Stuart, what if it was a soap opera? Fred Armisen shares the surprising way SNL's 'The Californians' came to be: 'This really did happen'

Stuart, what if it was a soap opera?

Fred Armisen shares the surprising way SNL's 'The Californians' came to be: 'This really did happen'

Stuart, what if it was a soap opera?

By Daysia Tolentino

August 30, 2025 4:00 p.m. ET

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Fred Armisen in 2025. Credit:

*Saturday Night Live *alum Fred Armisen recalled the moment that "The Californians" clicked.

The comedian sat down with Mike Birbiglia for his podcast *Working It Out* and shared what he appreciates in his collaborators.

"I love when someone comes up with something that didn't occur to me," the *Wednesday *actor said. "And it just haunts me in the moment."

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He said that "The Californians" came to be because *SNL *writer James Anderson made a simple suggestion that felt like an aha moment.

"This sounds almost like something for, like, a book about *SNL,* but this really did happen for 'The Californians,'" he said. "I was like, 'I just want something with, like, directions, where people are talking to each other and they're talking about directions and that's, like, the crux of it.' And James Anderson, who I wrote it with, was like, right in the moment, was like, 'What if it's a soap opera?'"

"The Californians" features cast members donning blonde wigs, speaking in Valley accents, and sharing directions in a melodramatic way. It's been a recurring bit on the long-running sketch show since 2012.

The sketch was born out of the specific navigation tips he would get while visiting Los Angeles. It became a joke among some of the *SNL *cast, including Armisen, Bill Hader, and Kenan Thompson. However, Armisen said he "never would have thought" about making it a soap.**

Bill Hader, Kristen Wiig, and Fred Armisen in 'The Californians' for SNL's 40th Anniversary Special in 2015.

Dana Edelson/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty

The *Portlandia *star said he never knows when a sketch will do well. "The Californians" was written at midnight the evening before the week's table read, which is what Armisen and Anderson were focused on.

"If it gets picked to go into production, then you start to worry and go like, 'Is there enough?'" he said. "But for the table, it's more, it really does feel like, 'Will my friends at the table find it entertaining?'"

Armisen added that *SNL *taught him a "real lesson" about cutting down sketches because long scripts at the table read were simply unpleasant to sit through.

Listen to the full episode of *Working It Out *with Fred Armisen below.

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Source: "AOL TV"

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