I’ve always been aware of Saturday Night Live’s cut-for-time sketches, and I know that working on the show is not easy at all. However, I’ve never realized how both those elements can play into the final sketch of a given episode. That all changed, though, as Sarah Sherman recalled how one now-iconic sketch had to change as it was being performed to make sure the show ended on time.
As its title states, Saturday Night Live is done live, and that means anything can happen. That also means if anything happens and the plan gets changed during the episode, everything will probably be impacted. For example, if one sketch runs long, another could be cut for time. Therefore, having your sketch in the final slot of a given episode means you have to be ready to make changes within seconds' notice, as Sarah Sherman explained during The Rundown:
