What does the credit ‘featuring’ mean for a cast member on SLN? Not a regular cast member? They seem to appear every week just like a ‘regular’ cast member.
Star vs spear carrier.
So featured cast members are spear carriers? ‘Featured’ sounds like they are special in some way. Irony? I guess I don’t get it.
If you read the Wikipedia entry for SNL, cast members have to agree to lock themselves into a long-term deal with NBC, both with SNL itself, and potential follow-on sitcoms. The “featured player” level allows them to try people out for a year or two without being locked into a long-term contract, I’m guessing.
It’s the equivalent difference between full-time employees and temps. A main player is on contract to appear in every episode. A featured player works on an on-call basis. It’s also a ‘try out’ for new blood; if a particular actor makes a big splash with the audience, he/she can be brought in full time. If audience reaction is “meh”, the actor can be dropped without much fuss.
Of course, just like a temp, the featured players pretty much do the same amount of work as the ‘regular’ cast, but Lorne Michaels doesn’t have any obligation to get them in an episode if he doesn’t feel like it. They likely get paid less money than the ‘regulars’ do as well.
Thanks Don. That makes sense…
Does anyone know what featured players are paid?
Whatever falls out of the pockets of the live audience. Minus Lorne’s cut.
In the fifth season, Lorne created the category of “featured players” to help round out the cast after the (devastating) departures of John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd. Except for Paul Shaffer, all the FPs were writers on the show (e.g. Al Franken, Tom Davis, Brian Doyle-Murray). Later, during Jean Dumanian’s regime as producer, they became glorified extras. Eddie Murphy started as one; he was promoted to full cast member when they discovered he was funnier than all the cast members combined.
As per Chron.com:
“Television performers received the same amount as movie actors except when given a “major role.” This is defined as someone who was granted a credit at the front of the show with the forms “Guest Star,” “Special Guest Star,” “Starring” or “Special Appearance By.” They received $4,631 per week in half-hour shows, and $7,410 per week for one-hour shows. Those hired for 10 to 19 weeks made $2,506 per week, while those who worked for 20 or more weeks made $2,087 per week. Television also had rates for actors hired to work for three days. Whether they sang or not on half-hour or full-hour shows, they received $2,130 for the period."
So while they are not getting rich (especially for NYC standards), they should be able to pay some bills and save a bit until they get hired full time, or find other work.
I do remember reading in some story about the back stage antics at SNL that it is really cutthroat when it comes time to deciding what makes it to the air and what doesn’t. You could be in three or four sketches during the week, and then come Saturday night and find all of those sketches you had been rehearsing had been cut and you don’t even appear on stage. Supposedly, it was not based solely off the humor, but the political in-fighting of getting your sketch selected. Doesn’t sound like a fun environment to work in, unless you are full time and don’t care how many times you appear in any show.