Chevy Chase Hates the Way Current ‘Saturday Night Live’ Cast Says, ‘Live From New York…’

Chevy Chase was one of the original breakout stars of “Saturday Night Live,” and it turns out he’s not enjoying everything he’s seeing and hearing on the current iteration of the long-running NBC sketch comedy series. Chase appears on an episode of Netflix’s “Norm Macdonald Has a Show” (via CinemaBlend) and can be heard launching into a mini-rant about the one thing he hates about the present “Saturday Night Live” cast.

According to Chase, the current “SNL” cast is not doing justice to the signature catchphrase, “Live from New York, it’s Saturday night.” Chase and the original cast popularized the phrase during the early run of the Lorne Michaels-backed series, and the comedian says the current cast has lost the intention behind what makes the catchphrase such a staple of the series.

“I mean it just gets so bad,” Chase said about the line delivery, “and it seems like some guys are out there just to be the guy who says, ‘Live from New York,’ and then does it poorly. Anyway, that’s not nice of me to say, but…fuck ’em.”

Chase said that when he used to deliver the line he did it as if he were “SNL” announcer Don Pardo. “The reason I did it is because there was another show, so we couldn’t say ‘Saturday Night Live,’” he explained. “There was a show called ‘Saturday Night Live with Howard Cossell’ and I think Lorne felt, and rightfully so, that it’s important to say that it’s live because there’s so many sketches and actors. It’s not easy.”

“Saturday Night Live” just won its fourth Emmy for variety sketch series and has received a total number of 23 nominations in the category over the years. Chase’s episode of “Norm Macdonald Has a Show” is now streaming on Netflix.