Podcast Summary: Fly on the Wall with Dana Carvey and David Spade

Episode: RE-RELEASE – Chloe Fineman
Date: February 18, 2026
Podcast Host: Audacy
Guests: Chloe Fineman (Saturday Night Live cast member)

Overview

In this engaging, joke-filled episode, Dana Carvey and David Spade sit down with SNL standout Chloe Fineman for a candid and hilarious conversation. The trio discusses Chloe's journey to SNL, the art and chaos of impressions, collaboration and competition among cast members, backstage realities, and the unique pressures of live comedy. Throughout, the tone remains light, collaborative, and authentically showbiz, with plenty of spirited riffing and warmth.

Key Topics & Insights

1. Chloe’s SNL Journey & Roots

• Bay Area Beginnings:

  • Chloe and David bond over shared Bay Area roots: she's from Piedmont/Berkeley, he’s from San Carlos.
    • [04:18] Chloe: "I grew up in Berkeley, and then in high school, I moved to Piedmont."
  • Chloe reveals she’s lived in New York for nearly 20 years after attending college there, even before SNL.

• Early Interest in Comedy:

  • Started in improv classes as a child, influenced by the local Bay Area scene (including brushes with Robin Williams' circles and Rob Schneider).
    • [22:04] Chloe: "My dad...would take me to improv at Fort Mason in San Francisco. There were a lot of, like, Robin Williams friends..."

2. Chloe’s Impression Game: Process & Stories

• Approach to Impressions:

  • Chloe is known for her broad range of celebrity impressions, from Drew Barrymore and Jennifer Coolidge to Greta Gerwig and Nicole Kidman.
    • [10:09] Chloe: "Drew Barrymore...they all do pretty good. And then I think I do way too many...People...are kind of like laughing just to be nice."
  • She prefers tackling “beautiful boys” over “real men”; Harry Styles and Timothée Chalamet were particular challenges, especially performing Chalamet in front of Chalamet.
    • [11:02] Chloe: "I can do like beautiful boys. Real, Real men? No, I think they're so hard."
  • Her process often starts with mimicking laughter and mouth movements; she finds award show acceptance speeches especially ripe for inspiration.
    • [31:26] Chloe: "If I'm really stuck, laughs are such an in...the way their mouth is doing and their laughs."

• Lauren Michaels, Feedback, and Pressure:

  • The hosts and Chloe discuss Lorne Michaels’ enigmatic feedback style, sharing “zen koans” of showbiz advice.
    • [15:07] Chloe (quoting Lorne): "'Yeah, you always want to live in a place you can't quite afford.'"
    • [16:42] Chloe: “If you’re doing the same thing you did in your first year, in your fifth year, it’s time to go.”
    • The anxiety of Lorne psychoanalyzing each cast member and how castmates are left to wonder how they’re perceived.

3. Backstage at SNL — Writing, Sketches, & Collaboration

• Contrast Between Cast Members:

  • Chloe describes her dynamic with Sarah Sherman, contrasting their stage personas ("two nice little Jewish perverts").
    • [08:47] Chloe: "Two nice little Jewish perverts coming out."
  • They riff on how differing comic energies get blended in double-headliner shows—“After Dark” shows mix Chloe's impressions (sometimes with “orgasm” punchlines) and Sarah’s more bodily, offbeat, or grotesque fare.

• Writing and Pitching:

  • Chloe explores the delicate politics of collaborating with writers, feeling nervous about wasting their time and striving to build lasting relationships through mutual "wins" (having sketches get on air).
    • [39:24] Chloe: "I'm the most nervous on the show just in terms of like letting writers down...if they cut it, those people aren't gonna write with me again."
  • She reveals the intense and draining nature of all-night writing sessions.
    • [40:28] David: "Tuesday night at 2am...the souffle is just deflated. Five minutes of no talking."

• Pre-Tapes & Behind the Scenes:

  • Chloe details the process and unpredictability of getting pre-taped sketches approved, sometimes learning 15 minutes before selection.
    • [51:12] Chloe: "It's cool with the pre tapes...you'll get an email like, 15 minutes before the pics are out, asking to Zoom for your video."
  • She shares a disaster story about a seafood tower-themed sketch stinking up the writers’ room during rewrites.

4. Iconic & Awkward Moments:

• Beavis and Butt-Head Sketch (with Ryan Gosling):

  • The group recounts the famously “broken” Beavis and Butt-Head sketch, which had everyone on set breaking character, especially Heidi Gardner—turns out the sketch had been pitched multiple times before.
    • [43:11] Chloe: "[Heidi] never breaks. That was what was so, like, delightful...it was so hard [not to break]."
    • [44:32] Chloe: "There's a Jonah Hill dress rehearsal you can watch...they said the Jonah Hill one's hilarious. It just never made it past the finish line."

• Celebrity Impressions:

  • Chloe demonstrates and discusses impressions of Nicole Kidman, Greta Gerwig, Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Coolidge, among others.
    • [24:52] Chloe (on Nicole Kidman): "I think it's like N U U U U U U U A, A, A E E E E R R. No, no, no."

• Audition Stories:

  • She originally auditioned with Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, and Greta Gerwig; her Greta Gerwig impression was the only thing that got Lorne to laugh.

• Bird Calling and Letterman Appearance:

  • Early bird-calling contest led to appearing on Letterman as a teen; humorously self-deprecating about the oddly adult subtext and awkwardness.
    • [18:56] Chloe: "We said something about, like feeling your inner bird, but you were like these like 15 year old girls. It was weird, but it was on tv."

5. The SNL Cast: Past and Present

• Cast Changes & Dynamics:

  • Chloe came in with Bowen Yang and Shane Gillis' short-lived tenure; she refers to veterans (like Kate McKinnon, Cecily Strong) with respect and awe.
  • Discusses the challenge (and relief) of having impressions or pre-taped sketches with “super seniors.”
    • [49:21] Chloe: "Just getting those super seniors to be in your video was so hard."
  • She reflects on a sketch where she did impressions of castmates (e.g., Melissa Villaseñor, Kate McKinnon) and the reactions to it.

• Current Show Vibes:

  • Chloe expresses a sense of camaraderie in the current cast, noting that the group is "cooking" and feeling more cohesive as the cast has settled in.
    • [52:57] Chloe: "It's like. Found it, but we've, like, figured each other out a little bit more."

6. Silly vs. Political Comedy

• The trio discuss the audience’s hunger for silly, abstract, or even “weird” sketches as a relief from the politically charged climate.
  • [55:55] Chloe: "It's...opened the Door for weird, which I think is so nice...I'm not the smartest with the political stuff, so I don't."
  • [56:39] Chloe: "We're in the era, age of weird."

Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• Chloe on Impressions:
  • [16:42] "If you're doing the same thing you did in your first year, in your fifth year, it's time to go."
  • [25:06] "I have weird taste...Greta Gerwig...that was the only one thing he [Lorne] laughed at in my audition."
  • [28:38] "Everyone I know has been doing [Jennifer Coolidge] since we were, like, 10 because of American Pie."
  • [30:07] "If I make a goal of doing an impression...it's kind of a bad feeling when you first start and you don't have it at all."
• On the challenge of live TV/comedy:
  • [41:07] David: "Keenan is so articulate...he has like a mischievous vibe...he's not breaking. But you see he's enjoying it."
• Dana on Lorne Michaels:
  • [17:14] "He [Lorne] goes, 'they can't miss you if you don't go away.'"
• On writing pressure:
  • [39:24] Chloe: "I'm the most nervous on the show just in terms of like letting writers down."
  • [40:28] David: "[Tuesday 2am]...the souffle is just deflated. Five minutes of no talking."
• Reflecting on creative failures:
  • [35:39] Chloe: "It was the hardest bomb ever...she and I haven't written since...when you bomb that badly, it's like, hard to recover a bit."
• On adapting to the SNL process:
  • [51:12] "You'll get an email 15 minutes before the picks are out, asking to Zoom for your video."
• On the current climate of comedy:
  • [56:39] Chloe: "We're in the era, age of weird."
• On political impressions:
  • [56:18] David: "If I do Biden, I feel like I'm doing something really nasty and wrong..."

Select Timestamps for Important Segments

• Chloe’s background and Bay Area upbringing: [04:18]–[05:10]
• Impressions origins & process: [10:01]–[13:06]; [24:46]–[31:38]
• SNL audition and Lorne Michaels stories: [13:55]–[16:42]
• Collaboration and winning with writers: [38:06]–[40:28]
• Behind-the-scenes of Beavis & Butt-Head sketch: [41:07]–[44:56]
• Bird-calling contest & Letterman story: [18:56]–[20:47]
• Reflections on cast, changes, and pre-tapes: [47:41]–[52:14]
• The urge for "weird" in comedy and political avoidance: [55:52]–[56:39]

Conclusion

This episode is a revealing and laugh-heavy look behind the SNL curtain, with Chloe Fineman’s candor and comic energy perfectly matched by the hosts’ playful banter. Fans are treated to frank talk about artistic anxiety, career progression, the realities of writer-cast collaboration, and the lasting influence of SNL’s legendary “impressionists.” The episode navigates both the light and shadow of pursuing comedy at the highest level – offering both aspiring performers and armchair fans a rare fly-on-the-wall perspective.