“Saturday Night Live” star Leslie Jones said she hoped the comedy show would move past politics-based jokes and offered advice for rising comedians.
Jones told The Wrap that last season’s “Saturday Night Live” did a lot of jokes about politics but said it was the staff’s “responsibility” to “cover that stuff.”
“I hope next year we can do more funnier stuff instead of a lot of political stuff this year, which we had to,” Jones told The Wrap. “There was so much stuff that was happening, there was no way that our show, with the responsibility that we have, would not to cover that stuff. It was just too important. But I do hope that next year will be a lot more funny-funny based stuff, more comedy based stuff instead of a lot of political stuff.”
MEGHAN MARKLE, QUEEN ELIZABETH STEP OUT FOR FIRST ROYAL ENGAGEMENT TOGETHER
Jones portrayed former White House staffer Omarosa Manigault Newman on the hit comedy show.
Jones explained there was a need for comedians who joke about politics but said at times “it can’t always be serious.”
“There should be a stream of comics that come and do that type of comedy, because we do need that,” Jones said. “And I love looking at that type of comedy that explains what’s going on and make it funny so you can really realize this is ridiculous. But there should be more than that as far as funny comics that come and really make you laugh. Like so gut laugh. Comedy is a release just like art and music. All of that is the same thing. You need that release. It can’t always be serious. You need ‘The Three Stooges’ just as much as you need John Oliver.”
REBEL WILSON’S AUSTRALIAN-RECORD DEFAMATION PAYOUT SLASHED
Jones also had some advice for comics starting out: Don’t do the same joke everyone else is making.
“One thing that I always made a goal was never to talk about what everybody else is talking about, because most of the time, maybe 10 comics are doing literally the same Trump joke,” she explained. “When I started, it wasn’t important about being famous or being heard of. The most important thing was if we were funny. The comics today are — it’s stressful to go to a comedy show, because that’s all they’re going to do is just talk about that. No one just gets up and does a simple joke that makes you laugh.”