Dana Carvey on ‘SNL’ Joe Biden Impression: ‘It Was a Delicate Thing’

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“Saturday Night Live” legend Dana Carvey recently discussed his role as President Joe Biden on the podcast “Fly on the Wall.” Carvey, who appeared in several sketches during the 2024 election cycle, portrayed Biden distinctly different than predecessors like Jason Sudeikis and Jim Carrey.

“I knew that he was compromised mentally, I mean, it was obvious,” Carvey said (via Variety). “But it was a delicate thing in the comedy world. There were a lot of people who did not want to do anything that would kind of ding him in an awkward way.”

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Carvey said, though, that his job was simply to create a version of the former president that could make everyone chuckle.

“That’s the key, if I can do Biden, if I can make Biden funny to everybody, then I am where I want to be… And to make it funny, it had to be recognizable,” he said. “And so there were certain things I did not include in my package.”

Political sendups have been a cornerstone of “SNL” since its early days 50 years ago. Last season also saw the return of Maya Rudolph in her popular impression of Vice President Kamala Harris. Rudolph said that even the 2024 presidential nominee herself was a fan.

“This is so much bigger than me, and this is about something very important,” Rudolph told Variety in September 2024. “I’m thrilled to be associated with it, and I’m also glad that I’ve played her and everyone’s cool with it. She likes it.”

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She also talked about how the descriptive term “funt” was coined.

“And so the fictional Kamala that we created tapped into her fun. And then [‘SNL’ producer] Steve Higgins said to me that his wife called her a ‘fun aunt,’ and we were laughing at how that sounds like ‘funt.’ We just went from there,” Rudolph said. “That was the moment where you realize, ‘Oh, now I know how to do this.'”

As for Carvey, Biden is far from the only impression he tackled. On a November 2022 episode of “Jimmy Kimmel Live” he showcased his impersonations of Presidents Donald Trump, George H.W. Bush, and Barack Obama, as well. Watch the full segment below:

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