By Wonderwall.com Editors
7:00pm PDT, Aug 23, 2023
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Lorne Michaels' "Saturday Night Live" — which has claimed nearly 100 Emmys over the years — has been giving us the giggles since 1975. Many fans of the long-running sketch-comedy series argue that the 2000s — when the cast included Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Tina Fey and more — was its funniest decade. In honor of Kristen Wiig's 50th birthday on Aug. 22, 2023, we're checking in on 2000s-era "SNL" stars to find out what they're up to (and look like) today…
Kristen Wiig joined "Saturday Night Live" in 2005 and left the long-running sketch-comedy series in 2012 — a year after she headlined "Bridesmaids." (She and frequent collaborator Annie Mumolo scored Oscar nominations for writing the hit ensemble comedy.) During her time on "SNL," Kristen was known for fan-favorite characters like the Target lady, trouble-making little girl Gilly and compulsive one-upper Penelope. Her myriad celeb impressions included Dolly Parton, Kris Jenner, Madonna, Nancy Pelosi, Taylor Swift, Diane Sawyer and Suze Orman (pictured).
Keep reading to see where they all are today…
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Kristen Wiig went on to voice characters in the "Despicable Me" and "How to Train Your Dragon" franchises and to appear on screen in a wide range of movies like "The Skeleton Twins" with old "SNL" co-star Bill Hader, the female-led "Ghostbusters" reboot, "Wonder Woman 1984," "Zoolander 2" and "Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar," among others.
She split from The Strokes drummer Fabrizio Moretti a year after she left "SNL" and in 2021 revealed she'd quietly married actor Avi Rothman, with whom she welcomed twins via surrogate in 2020.
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After joining NBC's "Parks and Recreation" as small-town public servant Leslie Knope in 2009, Amy Poehler became a mainstream comedy star. She earned multiple Emmy nods for her work on the show, which wrapped in 2015, as well as nominations for writing and producing the TV series "Russian Doll" starring Natasha Lyonne and for her hosting work alongside "Parks and Rec" co-star Nick Offerman on "Making It."
Amy — who's also starred in films including "Inside Out," "Sisters" (with Tina Fey) and "Moxie" since leaving "SNL" — won an Emmy along with Tina in 2016 after they returned to guest host "SNL" together. She returned to the "SNL" stage to reprise her role as Leslie Knope from "Parks and Rec" in 2023 and next up will lend her voice to "Inside Out 2," which is due in 2024.
Amy and husband Will Arnett, with whom she shares sons Archie and Abel, split in 2012. She made headlines when she dated another comedy star, Nick Kroll, from 2013 to 2015.
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Maya Rudolph ruled "Saturday Night Live" from 2000 to 2007 and has made several cameos on the long-running sketch comedy series in the ensuing years. The funnywoman impersonated everyone from Beyonce (pictured) and Donatella Versace to Paris Hilton, Oprah Winfrey and Barbra Streisand.
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Post-"SNL," Maya Rudolph appeared in a slew of movies including the "Grown Ups" franchise and "Bridesmaids" and lent her voice to films including the "Angry Birds" movies, "Big Hero 6" (in a role she reprised on the 2022 Disney+ series "Baymax!"), "The Lego Movie 2," "Luca" and more. She's done a lot of TV work too and won Emmys in 2020 and 2021 for voicing characters on the animated sitcom "Big Mouth" and for her guest performances on "SNL" as both a host and for her portrayal of Vice President Kamala Harris during the 2020 presidential campaign. She also scored three nominations for her work on "The Good Place." More recently, she lent her voice to "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem."
Since 2001, the comedienne has been partnered with filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson, with whom she has four kids: Pearl, Lucille, Jack and Ida.
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Rachel Dratch starred on "Saturday Night Live" from 1999 to 2006 and has returned to the long-running sketch-comedy series several times in recent years. During her tenure (and as recently as 2020), she portrayed one of the show's most memorable characters of all time: Debbie Downer (pictured). She also portrayed numerous fictional characters and real-life celebrities including "wicked" Boston teen Denise, Harry Potter, Drew Barrymore, Martha Stewart, Elizabeth Taylor and Britney Spears.
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Rachel Dratch has enjoyed a steady presence on the big and small screens for years post-"SNL," appearing on dozens of TV shows including "The Middle" and "Broad City" and in movies like "Click," "Spring Breakdown" alongside pal and fellow "SNL" alum Amy Poehler (Rachel also co-wrote it) and the 2021 Hallmark holiday movie parody "A Clüsterfünke Christmas" on Comedy Central with former "SNL" co-star Ana Gasteyer (Rachel co-wrote that one too).
In 2022, she became a first-time Tony nominee, for best featured actress in a play for her work in "POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumba** Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive." And in 2023, she popped up on a episode of the "Sex and the City" reboot, "And Just Like That…" She authored a book in 2012, "Girl Walks into a Bar…: Comedy Calamities, Dating Disasters, and a Midlife Miracle," in which she discussed her surprise pregnancy with son Eli — whose dad is her now-ex, natural food industry consultant John Wahl — at 44 in 2009. She also opened up about being recast on the hit series "30 Rock" — Rachel was the original Jenna Maroney, a role that went to Jane Krakowski.
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Tina Fey joined the "Saturday Night Live" writing staff in 1997 and went on to become the show's first female head writer. She officially joined the cast in 2000 and sat behind the "Weekend Update" news desk — first with Jimmy Fallon and then with longtime BFF Amy Poehler — until she left "SNL" in 2006. Just two years later, she returned to host the long-running sketch-comedy series, and in 2009, she won an Emmy for impersonating Sarah Palin on the show.
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Tina Fey left "SNL" and created "30 Rock," on which she starred as Liz Lemon — and won multiple Emmys for her acting, writing and producing work on the hit sitcom, which ended in 2013. The comedy genius then created another successful series, "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt," on which she made the occasional cameo, and earned even more Emmy nods for that work.
Tina's also appeared in several films including "Muppets Most Wanted," "Sisters" (with bestie Amy Poehler) and "Whiskey Tango Foxtrot." In recent years, she's voiced "22" in Pixar's "Soul" and had a recurring role on Hulu's "Only Murders in the Building." She created the musical adaptation of her 2004 film "Mean Girls" for Broadway and earned a Tony Award nomination in 2018 for her efforts, with plans to take the musical version to the big screen in the future.
Tina has been married to composer Jeff Richmond, with whom she shares daughters Alice and Penelope, since 2001.
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Jason Sudeikis joined "Saturday Night Live" as a writer in 2003 and then served as a cast member from 2005 to 2013. He portrayed President George W. Bush a handful of times (pictured) and famously co-starred alongside Kristen Wiig in the popular "Two A-H****" sketches.
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Jason Sudeikis — who returned to "SNL" as a host in late 2021 — went on to star in a handful of comedies like "We're the Millers" and the "Horrible Bosses" sequel. He also had a lengthy stint on "Last Man on Earth" before scoring a major breakthrough with "Ted Lasso," the hit comedy series he starred on, developed and wrote. The series broke records as the most nominated freshman comedy in Emmys history in 2021 with 20 nods. Jason ultimately took home the Emmy for best actor in a comedy series — he also claimed top honors at the Golden Globes and the SAG Awards that year — while the show won the Emmy for best comedy series.
From 2011 to 2020, Jason was in a relationship with actress-director Olivia Wilde — they were engaged but never wed — with whom he shares two children, Otis and Daisy. In 2021, he moved on with "Ted Lasso" co-star Keeley Hazell, but they reportedly split in mid-2022.
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Andy Samberg starred on "Saturday Night Live" from 2005 to 2012. He was responsible for some of the show's earliest viral sketches including a series of hit SNL Digital Shorts: "Lazy Sunday," "D*** in a Box," "Motherlover," "J*** in My Pants," "I'm on a Boat" and the Natalie Portman rap.
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In 2014, Andy Samberg won a Golden Globe for his work as detective Jake Peralta on the hit sitcom "Brooklyn Nine-Nine," on which he starred from 2013 to 2021. He also headlined "Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping" and the Hulu movie "Palm Springs," voiced one of the main characters in several installments in the long-running "Hotel Transylvania" film franchise and starred as Dale in 2022's "Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers." In 2023, he appeared in the film "Self Reliance" and lent his voice to "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse."
The multi-hyphenate married musician Joanna Newsom, with whom he has a daughter, in 2013.
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Bill Hader had a long stint on "Saturday Night Live" from 2005 to 2013. While fans will always remember him as his wildly popular Stefon character from Seth Meyers' "Weekend Update" segments (pictured), the comedian also made us laugh with his myriad impressions of celebs like Tony Blair, Tim Gunn, Tim Burton, Steven Tyler, Steven Seagal, Stephen King, Robert Pattinson, Phil Spector, Prince Philip, Mark Cuban, John Mayer, Eddie Vedder, David Bowie, Daniel Radcliffe, Conan O'Brien, Clint Eastwood, Adam Levine, Al Pacino… and the list goes on and on!
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Since his time on "SNL," Bill Hader has had major success with his own HBO series, "Barry," which has been nominated for more than 30 Emmys. Bill's won two Emmys for best actor in a comedy series for his work on the hilariously dark show, which wrapped in 2023 after four seasons. In 2015, he and former "SNL" co-stars Seth Meyers and Fred Armisen created the IFC series "Documentary Now!" — which parodies a wide range of documentaries. He's also starred in several films like "Trainwreck" and "It: Chapter Two" and voiced characters in the "Angry Birds" movies, the 2017 "Power Rangers" reboot, "Toy Story 4," "Ralph Breaks the Internet" and "The Addams Family 2," among others.
Bill was married to writer-director Maggie Carey from 2006 to 2017. They have three daughters: Hannah, Hayley and Harper. He's since made headlines for his romances with actress Rachel Bilson, whom he dated in 2019 and 2020, and Anna Kendrick, whom he romanced in 2021 and 2022. In 2023, it was revealed that he's dating fellow comedy star Ali Wong.
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Seth Meyers starred on "Saturday Night Live" from 2001 to 2014. In 2005, he became the show's head writer, a position he held until he retired from the long-running sketch-comedy series. He also did a lengthy stint behind the "Weekend Update" news desk — first alongside longtime pal Amy Poehler, then by himself and finally beside then-newcomer Cecily Strong.
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Seth Meyers left "Saturday Night Live" in 2014 to host "Late Night with Seth Meyers," for which he's earned five Emmy nominations over the years. He's also scored a handful of Emmy nods for his work on "Documentary Now!" — which he created with fellow "SNL" alums Fred Armisen and Bill Hader — and his "Lobby Baby" comedy special, which centers around the arrival of his second child. He also created and voiced a main character in the animated adult comedy "The Awesomes."
Seth married human rights attorney Alexi Ashe in 2013. They have three children: sons Ashe and Axel (the aforementioned "Lobby Baby") and daughter Adelaide, who arrived in 2021.
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Kenan Thompson was already famous for his work on Nickelodeon's "All That" and "Kenan & Kel" when he joined the cast of "Saturday Night Live" in 2003. Fourteen years later, he became the longest-tenured cast member in the show's history — and he's still on the show today!
For nearly two decades, he's had audiences in stitches with characters including the hosts of "Black Jeopardy!" and "What Up with That?" and with his uncanny impressions of celebrities like Steve Harvey (pictured), Al Sharpton, Whoopi Goldberg, Bill Cosby and O.J. Simpson. He won an Emmy in 2018 for co-writing the song "Come Back, Barack" from an "SNL" music video sketch, and he's scored four more Emmy nominations for his work on the show over the years.
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Kenan Thompson has been busy on and off "SNL." He served as a judge on the NBC comedy competition show "Bring The Funny," stepped into the role of executive producer on Nickelodeon's "All That" reboot and for two seasons starred on his own NBC sitcom, "Kenan," as a widowed father who's determined to be a super-dad. In 2021, he scored double Emmy nominations for his work on both "SNL" and "Kenan."
The funnyman shares daughters Georgia and Gianna with former model Christina Evangeline, whom he married in 2011. The couple separated in 2021, and Kenan filed for divorce in 2022.
