Bill Hader will say goodbye Saturday Night Live with this week’s season finale. It’s sure to be a tough blow for fans of the show, as after eight years Hader’s characters have been a key ingredient its best moments.
From terrible New York City guide Stefon and the crotchety newsman Herb Welch to impersonations of Clint Eastwood, Alan Alda and James Carville, The Hollywood Reporter looks back at some of Hader's finest work.
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Stefon Zolesky
The insufferable club kid often exasperates Seth Meyers with his Weekend Update appearances, where he’ll suggest things to do in New York that sound horrible (and gruesome!). Watch his first Weekend Update appearance (Nov. 1, 2008) and his most recent (March 9) below.
The Ragin’ Cajun
Political analyst James Carville is never quite so ragin’ or Cajun as when Hader takes him on. There’s something snakelike and slightly creepy about Hader’s Carville. He’s a man who might wrestle an alligator, or embark on a friendship with one, depending on his mood. Below is Hader's first go at playing Carville (Sept. 26, 2009), followed by his most recent take (May 4).
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Clint Eastwood
This high-waisted badass is someone you listen to when he tells you to buy a Chrysler. Or that China’s manufacturing threatening American jobs. Or that he’s Batman. An word to the wise: get off his lawn if he asks.
Alan Alda
A little bumbling and charmingly cheerful, Hader’s Alan Alda auditions for classic films including Back to the Future and Top Gun. The impersonation is spot on and the results are amazing.
Game Show Host
There’s much talk about who will take over at Weekend Update with the upcoming departure of Seth Meyers for NBC's Late Night. But what will SNL do without Hader to call upon as the perennially corny game show host? See a prime example below, as Zach Galifianakis plays Game of Game of Thrones.
Herb Welch
This newsman harkens back to the golden age of journalism – and he hasn’t changed with the times. A little senile, slightly sexist, and totally incompetent, Herb never fails to make his interview subjects uncomfortable. Watch him take on Justin Timberlake below.
Greg is Not an Alien
It’s so weird, but it works as Hader stars opposite Kenan Thompson as co-hosts of a sports TV show. Hader plays Greg, an alien who has trouble hiding it, despite Thompson’s insistence that his colleague “is not an alien.” Watch him team up with Jon Hamm below.
