Before the first sketch aired for this season of “Saturday Night Live,” there was already controversy surrounding creator Lorne Michaels and the lack of diversity on NBC’s legendary sketch comedy show.
Namely, there hasn’t been a black woman selected to join the cast since Maya Rudolph departed five years ago. It was such a problem that even cast members Kenan Thompson and Jay Pharoah went on record to acknowledge the issue.
Never ones to allow others to have the last laugh, the show’s writers spun the controversy into a joke. On Nov. 3, actress Kerry Washington was the special guest host for the show. In the opening sketch, she played Michelle Obama, then did a hurried quick-change into Oprah Winfrey.
Breaking the fourth wall, the sketch came with a voice-over apology that began: “The producers at ‘Saturday Night Live’ would like to apologize to Kerry Washington for the number of black women she will be asked to play tonight.”
SNL producers also said they planned on addressing the lack of a black female cast members in the near future.
The joke drew some laughs, but Michaels wasn’t kidding around.
According to Deadline, the show’s creator will be meeting with seven to eight women, one of whom will be hired to join the cast in January. The field has already been narrowed down from dozens in casting calls that were held in New York City and Los Angeles.
Of the rumored women in the running, here are the five we think are most deserving of the gig:
Natasha Rothwell
Twitter: @natasharothwell
Tumblr: thoreauup.com
Currently based in New York City, Rothwell is a comedian SNL has had its eye on for some time.
Her “Flight Attendant” sketch (above), which helped her win NBCUniversal’s Diversity scholarship, would be a welcome addition to the show.
Bresha Webb
Twitter: @breshawebb
Instagram: @breshawebb
The Los Angeles-based actress is a series regular on the TVOne sitcom “Love That Girl.”
Webb also has some sketch comedy experience from her appearances on the short-lived FOX sketch show “In The Flow with Affion Crockett.”
Tanisha Long
Twitter: @tanishalong
Instagram: @tanishalong
A regular on MTV’s “Girl Code,” Tanisha Long is originally from Philadelphia but has been based in New York since 2006.
She has also done work with the UCB theater and puts out tons of her own content on her YouTube channel.
Leslie Jones
Twitter: @lesdoggg
Facebook: /LeslieJonesComedy
A former college basketball player who dropped out to pursue her dream of stand-up comedy, Jones’ loud, aggressive style was first noticed by comedian/actor Katt Williams.
Jones’ most recent stand-up special, “Problem Child,” is available on DVD. In the snippet above, she talks about the kind of girls every girl has in their group of friends.
Amber Ruffin
Twitter: @ambermruffin
Facebook: /Amber.Ruffin.12
The Los Angeles-based sketch comedian was recently mentioned as someone people should look out for by funny guys Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele of the Comedy Central show, “Key and Peele,” where Ruffin made an appearance.
Ruffin also starred in a Funny or Die sketch of her own called “Faced With Danger,” as posted above.