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Saturday Night Live

Who: Mikey Day
Cast Member Since: 2016

Michael “Mikey” Day is now officially one season overdue for his true breakout moment on Saturday Night Live.

Sure, he was behind 2016’s massively popular Haunted Elevator sketch (i.e.: David S. Pumpkins) both as a writer and performer, but the recently wrapped 2018-2019 season was Day’s third as a cast member, and I still believe most audience members cannot recall his name from memory.

This is odd considering how much screen time Day actually accumulates – especially after the 2016-2017 season where he appeared on average in three to four sketches per episode. The Orange County native and Groundlings alum was no doubt hired for his impersonation chops (his SNL audition is even reported to have included a Kyle Mooney impression), so part of the reason for his ambiguity lies in the amount of time he spends behind makeup for the likes of Donald Trump Jr., Michael Flynn, Roy Moore, Paul Ryan, etc. Without a stable of his own reoccurring characters, the rest of Day’s air time is primarily spent playing the straight/setup man in bits like Pumpkin Patch which puts him in the position of surrendering the best zingers to castmates.

So, is the big “Mikey is a household name” break coming now that Alec Baldwin appears to be done playing President Donald Trump? At face value, the 39-year-old Day doesn’t much resemble the 73-year-old Trump, but let’s not forget Lorne Michael’s willingness to experiment. It wasn’t long ago when the show made the odd choice of having Fred Armisen portray President Barack Obama (prior to Jay Pharoah taking it over). And how about when the show struggled with President George W. Bush after the departure of Will Ferrell? The George W. impersonation was passed between Chris Parnell, Darrell Hammond and even Jason Sudeikis before landing full time with Will Forte.

Is Day perfect for Trump? Debatable, but impossible to say until we see him made up with the wig and eyebrows. He nails Trump Jr., but Trump Sr. carries much more weight – not to mention increased media and White House attention. If Lorne doesn’t bring in someone fresh for Trump, or give it back to former cast member turned announcer Darrell Hammond (who played Trump nearly 30 times between 1999 and 2016), the only other current cast member candidates would be Beck Bennett or Alex Moffat. Neither of them seem like a complete home run either, so perhaps Day participates in a Trump musical chairs of sorts for the upcoming 45th season?

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Regardless of his current anonymity, Day is a very important part of modern Saturday Night Live – even if it isn’t always apparent from seeing his face on-screen. Day has the absurdist sense of humor reminiscent of Armisen and Forte, and when partnered with writer Streeter Seidell, they have penned some truly funny moments such as Space Station Broadcast, Mafia Meeting and Elf on the Shelf. It should also be noted that, along with Kate McKinnon, the pair is also behind the wonderful Mrs. Rafferty sketches. Oh, and he’s doing standup now as well.

Bottom line, Day is writing and performing with the mindset of a man with something to prove, and I have no doubt time will show him to be one SNL‘s strongest hires of the 2010s. Check out some of his best work from the past few seasons below:

Sketch: “SWAT Recon”
Episode: Chris Pine/LCD Soundsystem (5/6/17)
NOTE: Sneaking in at the end of Day’s first season in the cast, this feels like one of those end of the night sketches, but it actually aired before the first musical guest performance. Wonderfully bizarre and creative all around. And I think about the line “Do you remember when you could have fun like THAT” on a regular basis.

Sketch: “Tournament Fighter”
Episode: Tiffany Haddish/Taylor Swift (11/11/17)
NOTE: Day is a one of several performers in this sketch, but was a driving force behind creating it. Check out his first ever talk show appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers which revealed he and Bryan Tucker had been pitching it for years.

Sketch: “The War in Words”
Episode: Claire Foy/Anderson .Paak (12/1/18)
NOTE: Perfect example of a cast member making the most of their own writing.