Bob Odenkirk Was ‘Too Young’ and ‘Unsure’ of Himself When He Joined ‘SNL’: ‘It Came This Close So Many Times to Going So Wrong’

Michaela Zee

Bob Odenkirk is reflecting on his time as a writer on “Saturday Night Live.”

In a recent interview on comedian Tig Notaro’s podcast “Don’t Ask Tig,” the “Better Call Saul” and “Breaking Bad” actor recalled a discussion he had with his 24-year-old son Nate, who wants to pursue a career as a comedy writer.

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Odenkirk, who joined “SNL” at 25 years old, then shared his own insecurities writing professionally at a young age, saying, “I was unsure of myself. It was hard. It was existentially dangerous. I had feelings of ‘I should erase myself.'”

“I was too young when I got hired at ‘SNL,'” he continued. “That was not a good thing. That could’ve gone wrong. That could’ve gone so wrong. It came this close so many times to going so wrong. You gotta believe me. And it’s hard for kids to believe you when you say, ‘I had no f—ing clue what I was doing and I was scared outta my wits for years.'”

Odenkirk worked on “SNL” from 1987 to 1991, writing for icons such as Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Mike Myers, Tim Meadows and Chris Farley. Despite his struggles on the late-night live television sketch comedy, Odenkirk has previously shared a few positive moments working on the series, most notably Farley’s Matt Foley sketches.

“I played the dad in the sketch, and we did it seven times a week at Second City,” he said on an episode of “Hot Ones” back in March. “Every time I did that was the most fun I had in show business.”

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