When Donald Glover hosted Saturday Night Live in 2018, one thing dominated his monologue (and his mind): Why didnât Donald Glover book SNL? The Grammy- and Emmy Awardâwinning multi-hyphenate auditioned for the show (twice) but didnât make the cut. Well, in an April 4 GQ profile, Glover says Amy Poehler told him he didnât get on the show because his stand-up âlacked a point of view.â âMe being on SNL wouldâve killed me,â he said. âI got friends who made it on SNL and, at the time, I was like, damn. But if I got on SNL, my career wouldnât have happened.â And look, SNLâs pretty cool, but we might not trade that for Atlanta either.
Glover did book a job as a writer on 30 Rock while he was still an RA at NYU. âThere is no animosity between us or anything like that, but [Tina Fey] said it herself ⌠It was a diversity thing,â he recalled. There was a little animosity from the man next in line for the job, Kenya Barris. âI didnât know it was between me and him until later,â Glover added. âHe hit me one day and he was like, âI hated you for years!ââ Remember: If heâd booked 30 Rock there might not have been a Black-ish (or a Grown-ish or a Mixed-ish). Plus, heâd already co-created the best show of the 2000s, Americaâs Next Top Model. Success looks different for everyone.