Andy Samberg has fondly recalled how Amy Adams refused to do aSaturday Night Livesong with The Lonely Island because of its raunchy subject matter, and the movie it was supposed to be parodying.Saturday Night Live’s best skitshave often parodied pop culture media and real-world events, such as the recurringCelebrity Jeopardy!skit or the show’s mature take on the character Gumby. Some of its more memorable sketches were done by the comedy trio The Lonely Island, consisting of Sandberg, Akiva Schaffer, and Jorma Taccone.
Speaking onThe Lonely Island and Seth Meyers Podcastepisode 32 (viaVariety), Samberg recalled how, at one point,they were going to make a sketch alongside Adams spoofing her 2007 fantasy filmEnchanted. The sketch would see her reprise her role as Giselle and Samberg portray Robert, having the pair become an old couple at a picnic. One gets stung by a scorpion, and as they die, they sing about how they didn’t experiment much in their sexual lives. However, Adams turned down the idea because of how many children looked up to her character at the time:
I’m not gonna go into great detail about it, but it was a song that would have been a duet with me and Amy Adams, and it was very dirty. It was basically like we were both really old and we were having a picnic, old people couple, and one of us gets stung by a scorpion. And then I’m dying or something and the one lament on my deathbed is that we didn’t explore things more sexually in our life, and it’s this huge up anthem about that.
She was like, ‘That’s really funny. I can’t do that. Little girls are so obsessed with ‘Enchanted’ right now. They will find this, and it will be scarring for them. I just can’t mix that right now.’
Adams and Samberg later participated in the skit “Hero Song,” where she’s robbed by someone who is later mercilessly beaten by a superhero.The Lonely Island member realized how important it had been to ax theEnchantedsongafter witnessing firsthand just how much little girls looked up to his co-star. Check out more of what Samberg had to say below:
Within five minutes, a mother and her little girl walked up and the look on the little girl’s face upon seeing Amy Adams, I was like, ‘Oh, she was so right.' And it was very instructive for me. It’s not something I even ever thought about in our line of work, you know what I mean? Like, she actually has an obligation and a responsibility to those kids, and she took it really seriously. And I remember being really impressed by that.
Amy Adams hosted SNL in 2008, a year afterEnchanted’s release, which is when their song would have happened.
What Amy Adams Rejecting SNL’s Enchanted Song Meant For The Show
It Ended Up Being A Good Idea
[H]ad Adams done the skit with Samberg and the rest of The Lonely Island, it may have resulted in a parody that felt too soon, especially given just how many children looked up to the lead actor from her performance.
Enchantedwas a major hit for Disney, earning $340.5 million at the box officeagainst an $85 million budget, while also getting critical praise for its family-oriented story and Adams' performance. She would later return to thecast ofDisenchanted, a Disney+ sequel that saw many reprising their roles from the original movie. Unfortunately, the film didn’t perform well critically, but it didn’t negate the success of the original, nor the fond memories of the lead actors' performance as Giselle.
17-Year-Old Amy Adams Movie With 93% On Rotten Tomatoes Had The Exact Same Plot As Barbie
Barbie’s journey from a fantasy world to self-discovery in the real world has a shockingly similar story to this 20-year-old Amy Adams romcom.
However, had Adams done the skit with Samberg and the rest of The Lonely Island,it may have resulted in a parody that felt too soon, especially given just how many children looked up to the lead actor from her performance. Although she believed the skit was funny, her refusal to do it also emphasized how important it was for her that little girls looking up to her character didn’t get the wrong impression at too young an age. While a parody may work over a decade later, it may have received backlash when it was consideredAdams' best role.
Our Take On Adams Rejecting The Raunchy Enchanted Song
Hero Song Was A Better Direction At The Time
Although there was some potential for the raunchyEnchantedsong Samberg proposed to her, “Hero Song” was a better direction at the time because of how soon her role had been. Even thoughSaturday Night Livecould have involved the song in their lineup, the better direction truly was making sure her performances didn’t ruin the image she had with children. It was a positive decision that may have also helped her career, considering the major roles she’s gotten since then and will likely sign onto in the future.
Source:The Lonely Island and Seth Meyers Podcast(viaVariety)
