SNL Alums Will Ferrell and Harper Steele Recall Sketch About Eating a Unicorn They Regret Not Getting on Air (Exclusive)

Will Ferrell and Harper Steele reflect on what could have been during their days Saturday night live.

In an exclusive chat with PEOPLE ahead of the iconic sketch series’ 50th anniversary, the former cast member, 57, and writer, 63, look back on a few of their sketches that unfortunately never made it to air.

“We wrote a sketch together called ‘Unicorn Mountain,'” Steele recalls. “It was a funny game we’d play where I’d write half the skit and give him the other half. And Will started this skit, and it was a four-minute children’s show that opened up about Unicorn Mountain, and how it’s free and beautiful and magical [it was] and everything.”

Jean Smart walks among SNL The greats Steve Martin and Eddie Murphy ahead of the historic premiere of the 50th season

(L) Will Ferrell and Harper Steele.

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When Ferrell handed the blueprint over to Steele to continue, things took a dark turn for the mystical beings on top of the mountain.

“I opened an actual skit of him and Tracy Morgan eating a unicorn, talking about how easy it was to catch them,” she says with a laugh. “Because, you know, they’re so free and open and magical.”

Although the sketch “never got to wear,” Ferrell says series creator Lorne Michaels “missed a great one” by choosing to skip “Unicorn Mountain.”

Steele helped Ferrell create some of his most famous characters and sketches, including Ferrell as singer Robert Goulet. Ferrell, of course, would become the star of the movie, and Steele would become head writer SNL.

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Michaels created SNL 1975. Over the decades, SNL he went on to produce a number of iconic TV moments while launching the careers of several comedians who were cast members.

Talking to CBS Morning in December 2021, Michaels addressed speculation surrounding his retirement and what it would mean for the long-running sketch show.

“Well, I think I’m committed to carrying the show through to its 50th anniversary, which is in three years,” he said. “I would love to live it. And I feel like it would be a really good time to go.”

Lorne Michaels.

Julien M. Hekimian/Getty

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The Kennedy Center honoree said “of course” the show could exist without him, and Michaels said he has “a sense of where we’re going.” While he didn’t mention names of possible replacements, he did reveal that he has ideas for who might take over after he retires.

Michaels added, “Here’s the bottom line: I don’t want the show to ever be bad. I care too much about it, it’s been my life’s work. So, I’m going to do everything I can to keep it going and keep it going well.”

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Saturday night live season 50 premieres Saturday, September 28 at 11:30 PM ET on NBC.

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Source: HIS Education