Current and past SNL performers curate favorite sketches and songs to map out an ideal episode while Colin Jost explains the craft behind the show's opening sketch
The new short-form series from SNL, titled The Rundown, offers a behind-the-scenes twist on how a show is built by asking performers to choose the sketches and songs they would program into an ideal episode. Streaming across Peacock, YouTube and SNL’s own social channels, each installment spotlights a single castmember who pins favorites onto the show’s rundown board. The format is compact but revealing: by letting contributors justify selections, viewers learn why particular sketches endured and how musical moments fit into the overall rhythm of a live comedy hour.
Opening the series is Colin Jost, a longtime presence at SNL who began his tenure as a writer in the 2005-06 season and later became a prominent anchor on the show’s news segment. In his episode, Jost focuses on the often overlooked challenge of the cold open, which he describes as the opening sketch that precedes the show’s signature ‘Live from New York’ line. He estimates having written roughly one hundred such pieces during his tenure, underlining that the first laugh of the night can set the tone for everything that follows.
The series takes a workshop-like approach: each guest assembles a theoretical episode using their chosen sketches and performances, explaining the context and the reasons behind pickups. Guests include both legacy players and contemporary regulars — names like Dana Carvey, Mikey Day, Chloe Fineman, Bowen Yang and Questlove — who bring different eras and sensibilities to the same exercise. By design, episodes drop on Wednesdays during weeks when the main SNL broadcast is on hiatus, creating a steady cadence of short installments that run through mid-June. The format lets viewers contrast how a veteran might sequence an episode versus a newer castmember.
Jost emphasizes that the cold open is uniquely demanding because performers must wrestle an audience from a chilly, pre-show state into full engagement in minutes. After the club-style warm-up comic completes their job, the house often experiences a lull — Jost notes there can be nearly ten minutes of band music while the production readies itself. The challenge for writers and actors is to deliver an immediate, unmistakable hook that converts that thin patience into sustained laughter. Success in this slot is not just about a single joke; it is about creating momentum that benefits the entire live broadcast.
For his personal compilation, Jost selects a sketch from season 34 that paired Tina Fey and Amy Poehler in a parody of the real-world interview between Sarah Palin and Katie Couric. The piece, penned by Seth Meyers, became a touchstone for the show because it combined sharp political satire with instantly recognizable impersonations. Jost highlights how that sketch exemplifies the cold open’s power: recognizable targets, tight writing and performers who can land an impression while still being alive and spontaneous in the moment.
The Rundown is positioned to reach audiences across platforms: full short episodes are posted on Peacock, on SNL’s official YouTube channel and through the program’s social outlets. The staggered Wednesday release schedule — timed for weeks when the show is not airing live — keeps the series in rotation through mid-June, offering fans steady content between broadcasts. Looking toward the live slate, the show has a scheduled live episode on April 4 featuring Jack Black as host and Jack White as the musical guest, demonstrating how the classic broadcast and the new short-form series operate as complementary pieces of the SNL ecosystem.