Jim Carrey will no longer play Joe Biden on ‘SNL’
(CNN) — Jim Carrey‘s short stint as Joe Biden has come to an end.
Carrey will no longer play the president-elect on “Saturday Night Live,” the comedian announced on Twitter Saturday.
“Though my term was only meant to be 6 weeks, I was thrilled to be elected as your SNL President…comedy’s highest call of duty,” Carrey tweeted. “I would love to go forward knowing that Biden was the victor because I nailed that s***. But I am just one in a long line of proud, fighting SNL Bidens!”
Carrey played Biden for six episodes on the NBC variety show this season. His sketches usually found himself playing off Alec Baldwin as President Trump and Maya Rudolph as his running mate, Kamala Harris.
The decision to end his role as Biden was Carrey’s choice, according to a source close to the show. Carrey planned to only play the candidate in the run-up to the election, and since he live in Los Angeles, it would be difficult for him to travel back and forth for the show in the long term, the source said.
“SNL” did not announce who would be playing Biden on the show going forward.
Carrey was a surprising choice to play Biden when the show announced he’d be taking on the role in September.
For starters, Carrey is not an “SNL” cast member, and others have played Biden in the past including Woody Harrelson and former cast member Jason Sudeikis.
Carrey’s performance was notable and brought a lot of attention to the show, but it ultimately garnered mixed reviews with some critics saying that, despite Carrey’s comedic talents, his Biden was missing the mark.
“It sounded like a great get at first. Here was a big-time star that could balance out the heft of Alec Baldwin’s Trump. But after three episodes, Carrey still hasn’t managed to break through,” Vanity Fair wrote in October. “Maybe he’s too physical a performer, or too needy a showman, to capture the flapjack earnestness of the former vice president.”
The L.A. Times concurred writing in November that “despite the aviator glasses, silver hair and ‘here’s the deal’ phraseology, the gregarious Carrey has had a hard time exploiting Biden’s demeanor on the national stage this year — deliberate, controlled and understated.”
“Saturday Night Live” returns for a new episode on Saturday night. Kristen Wiig will host alongside musical guest, Dua Lipa.