Beck Bennett is the best, and Sarah Sherman let us all know that. Last month, she declared that the SNL alum is “everyone’s favorite,” and gushed about how much the people who work in 30 Rock adore him. Now, the Superman actor has opened up about learning that she said this, and sweetly explained why he had a “very emotional response” to it.
Alright, here's the backstory: Beck Bennett left SNL after Season 46 in 2021, and Sarah Sherman joined at the start of Season 47. So, they just missed each other, and she heard a lot about how much everyone loved him. Then, she got to meet him during the SNL 50 celebration (which you can stream with a Peacock subscription), and she totally understood the hype. As she said on the Good One podcast, once she finally met the DuckTales actor, she quickly realized he was “a hoot” and got why he was "everyone's favorite."
In response at the time, the comedian posted a simple “love you” message on his Instagram story. However, he’s been doing interviews for Superman’s release on the 2025 movie schedule, and he had the chance to recall his full reaction to her compliment during an interview with Nerdist, saying:
It's official. It's truth. That's a fact. I did see that, I could not believe it. I had a very emotional response to it. I was having a bad day, and then my wife sent that to me, and I was like 'Oh my God!' I could not believe it.
That’s so sweet! And he’s so right, when you are having a rough day, it’s always extra emotional to receive such a high compliment. Any day would have been a good day to hear Sherman’s words. However, the fact that it came in a moment where he seemingly needed a boost makes it mean even more. So, I see why it made him emotional.
He also contextualized what was going on at SNL around the time he left and she joined, claiming that he was the only person to depart between seasons, and that’s where the jokes and sarcasm come in:
She came in the year after I left. I was the only cast member to leave, which is great, you know, when you want to leave SNL by yourself so everybody focuses on you and celebrates you. You don't want to leave when three other beloved cast members are leaving, because they wouldn't have known I was gone otherwise.
Now, I do have to correct Bennett here, featured player Lauren Holt also didn’t return after Season 46. However, to his point, he was the only long-time cast member to depart that season, as Holt had only been on the show for one season, and he’d been there for eight. So, his exit was a very big deal.
To put this in a bit more perspective, Sherman was introduced on the NBC program alongside cast members who had spent a long time working with Bennett. This included Aidy Bryant, Pete Davidson, Mikey Day, Kate McKinnon, Cecily Strong, Alex Moffat, Kyle Mooney, the longest-running SNL cast member, Kenan Thompson, and more. So, considering SNL’s history of great casts and the greatness of this ensemble alone, I totally get why Bennett was blown away by this compliment from Sherman, as he reiterated:
But yeah, I just could not believe it.
Man, this story just makes me so happy, and I hope one day Beck Bennett and Sarah Sherman are able to work on something together. However, at the moment, there’s nothing in the works between the two. Never say never, though. There’s clearly mutual respect and admiration there, plus they’re both wickedly funny, so I wouldn’t rule anything out.
For now, though, you can catch Beck Bennett in Superman, which is in theaters currently. Then, make sure to stay tuned to the 2025 TV schedule for updates about Season 51 of SNL, because we should be learning more about it and its cast (which will likely still include Sarah Sherman) soon.
