‘S.N.L.’ Picks Maya Rudolph and Jim Gaffigan to Play Kamala Harris and Tim Walz

The casting ended months of speculation after President Biden, played on Saturday by Dana Carvey, withdrew from the race. James Austin Johnson continued as Donald Trump.

“Saturday Night Live” dug deep into its contact list of celebrity alumni and friends in the comedy world as it kicked off its 50th season with an opening sketch that featured Maya Rudolph’s anticipated return as Vice President Kamala Harris.

The sketch, for which the cast member James Austin Johnson returned in his recurring role as former President Donald Trump, also saw the debuts of the comedian Jim Gaffigan as Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota and Bowen Yang, another “S.N.L.” performer, as Senator JD Vance of Ohio.

And for good measure, the segment included appearances from “S.N.L.” alums Andy Samberg as Douglas Emhoff, the Second Gentleman, and Dana Carvey as President Joe Biden.

Speculation had swirled all summer about who would play these roles on “S.N.L.,” which tends to receive increased attention during presidential election seasons. That curiosity was intensified by the reshuffling of the Democratic ticket in July, when President Biden announced that he was withdrawing from the 2024 race.

In early August, when Harris chose Walz as her running mate, many fans wondered if Steve Martin, a frequent “S.N.L.” host and friend of the show, would be cast as the Minnesota governor and vice-presidential hopeful.

But Martin himself quickly nixed that, telling the Los Angeles Times that he did not consider himself an impressionist. “They’re going to find somebody really, really good,” Martin said at the time. “I’d be struggling.”

As recently as a few days ago, Lorne Michaels, the creator and longtime executive producer of “S.N.L.,” was characteristically cryptic about his casting plans for this season’s political sketches.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, he declined to say who would be playing Vance or Walz, or to say whether Trump would be played by Johnson or Alec Baldwin.

“I don’t want to get into what I’m doing,” Michaels said in that interview, adding that “S.N.L.” had the people needed and that “it should be fun.”

The opening sketch, which juxtaposed the scenes between presidential rallies for the Harris and Trump campaigns, saw Rudolph take the stage to applause. “Well, well, well,” she said. “Look who fell out of that coconut tree.”

Later in her speech, she brought out Gaffigan, the prolific standup, as an enthusiastic Walz. “Folks, I haven’t been this excited since I got a 10 percent rebate on a leaf blower from Menards.”

The energy was more subdued at the Trump rally, where Johnson stood behind a pane of bulletproof glass and told a weary crowd, “I see you trying to leave, but the doors are locked.”

After referring to a failed attempt to assassinate Trump at a rally in July, Johnson added, “They say that me blaming the Democrats for inciting violence is the pot calling the kettle black. But frankly I didn’t know the kettle was black until very recently. I thought the kettle was Indian.”

The glass was rolled away when Yang joined the rally as Vance. Yang said to the crowd: “How much do we love Donald Trump? Just this afternoon he said: ‘J.D., you’re like a son to me. Because I don’t like you but I’m stuck with you.’”

Samberg, in his role as Emhoff, said that if his wife became president, he looked forward to standing by her side and decorating the White House for Christmas. “The theme will be Hanukkah,” he said.

Carvey, a veteran impressionist who for “S.N.L.” played President George H.W. Bush and the independent presidential candidate Ross Perot appeared as Biden during the Harris rally.

“Thank you for putting country first and handing over the reins,” Rudolph said to him.

“I didn’t want to,” Carvey responded. “They made me.”

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