Ego Nwodim SaysSNLCast 'Would Be Doing Ourselves and the Show' a 'Disservice' By Not Using Cue Cards (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

Will Heath/NBC/Getty

Ego Nwodimis sharing some “truth” into the “not-so-secret” method that allowsSaturday Night Liveto proceed as smoothly as possible.“It’s scripted, our show. We read off the cue cards,” the actress, who was promoting her new Peacock seriesMr. Throwback, tells PEOPLE exclusively. “People are always like, ‘They’re reading off the cards.’ Guys, we’re supposed to read off the cards. We’re doing a live show. These sketches change up until the minute we put them up.““For instance, ‘Lisa from Temecula’ [sketch], the first one, there’s a whole chunk of that sketch that got taken out minutes before we put it up,” she revealed. “The writers didn’t even get a chance to find me to tell me that it was taken out.“From Nwodim’s perspective, “We have to rely on the cards. We would be doing ourselves and the show and sketches a disservice if we weren’t actually using their cards,” she says.“It’s just, every once in a while I’ll see a thing like, ‘They’re on cards,'” she adds. “We’re supposed to be. We have to. It’s live. It changes last minute, and some people can’t tell us the change before.“Nwodim, 36, also shared some additional insight into the inner workings of the iconic “Lisa from Temecula” sketch, which involves her titular character aggressively cutting through a steak to hilarious results. “That was a real steak. I mean, it’s hard to cut steak, but it’s even harder to cut an extra, extra, extra well-done steak,” she shares.(L-R) Bowen Yang, Molly Kearney, host Pedro Pascal, Ego Nwodim as Lisa from Temecula, and Punkie Johnson during the Lisa from Temecula sketch on Saturday, February 4, 2023.Will Heath/NBC/GettySaturday Night Liveis gearing up for the premiere ofits milestone 50th seasonon Saturday, Sept. 28. Teasing what fans can expect upon tuning in, Nwodim says the NBC show’s producers have been “working hard and have been since last year.““It’s going to be like the wedding of your dreams. It’s like your dad’s 50th birthday party or something,” she says. “I think it’s going to be really special. What I can say is they’re going out of their way and being really meticulous and thoughtful about who they have show up. And so, I know they’re very excited.“In addition toSaturday Night Live, fans can also catch Nwodim starring oppositeStephen “Steph” CurryandAdam Pallyon Peacock’sMr. Throwback, which involves a memorabilia salesman (Pally) who hopes to reconcile with his former middle school basketball teammate who is now an NBA legend (Curry).“There was so much play behind the scenes and so much laughter in between takes. It was such a joyous experience, such good vibes, such good energy throughout the entire shoot. … We were improvising and playing off of one another. It was just a very good time. And I think that shows,” she adds.Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Season 50 ofSaturday Night Livepremieres on Saturday, Sept. 28 at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBC.Mr. Throwbackis now streaming in full on Peacock.

Ego Nwodimis sharing some “truth” into the “not-so-secret” method that allowsSaturday Night Liveto proceed as smoothly as possible.

“It’s scripted, our show. We read off the cue cards,” the actress, who was promoting her new Peacock seriesMr. Throwback, tells PEOPLE exclusively. “People are always like, ‘They’re reading off the cards.’ Guys, we’re supposed to read off the cards. We’re doing a live show. These sketches change up until the minute we put them up.”

“For instance, ‘Lisa from Temecula’ [sketch], the first one, there’s a whole chunk of that sketch that got taken out minutes before we put it up,” she revealed. “The writers didn’t even get a chance to find me to tell me that it was taken out.”

From Nwodim’s perspective, “We have to rely on the cards. We would be doing ourselves and the show and sketches a disservice if we weren’t actually using their cards,” she says.

“It’s just, every once in a while I’ll see a thing like, ‘They’re on cards,'” she adds. “We’re supposed to be. We have to. It’s live. It changes last minute, and some people can’t tell us the change before.”

Nwodim, 36, also shared some additional insight into the inner workings of the iconic “Lisa from Temecula” sketch, which involves her titular character aggressively cutting through a steak to hilarious results. “That was a real steak. I mean, it’s hard to cut steak, but it’s even harder to cut an extra, extra, extra well-done steak,” she shares.

(L-R) Bowen Yang, Molly Kearney, host Pedro Pascal, Ego Nwodim as Lisa from Temecula, and Punkie Johnson during the Lisa from Temecula sketch on Saturday, February 4, 2023.Will Heath/NBC/Getty

Saturday Night Liveis gearing up for the premiere ofits milestone 50th seasonon Saturday, Sept. 28. Teasing what fans can expect upon tuning in, Nwodim says the NBC show’s producers have been “working hard and have been since last year.”

“It’s going to be like the wedding of your dreams. It’s like your dad’s 50th birthday party or something,” she says. “I think it’s going to be really special. What I can say is they’re going out of their way and being really meticulous and thoughtful about who they have show up. And so, I know they’re very excited.”

In addition toSaturday Night Live, fans can also catch Nwodim starring oppositeStephen “Steph” CurryandAdam Pallyon Peacock’sMr. Throwback, which involves a memorabilia salesman (Pally) who hopes to reconcile with his former middle school basketball teammate who is now an NBA legend (Curry).

“There was so much play behind the scenes and so much laughter in between takes. It was such a joyous experience, such good vibes, such good energy throughout the entire shoot. … We were improvising and playing off of one another. It was just a very good time. And I think that shows,” she adds.

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Season 50 ofSaturday Night Livepremieres on Saturday, Sept. 28 at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBC.Mr. Throwbackis now streaming in full on Peacock.

source: people.com