Jimmy Fallon Is Super Young (and Super Nervous) Doing Impressions for His SNL Audition
The Tonight Show host was just trying to break into the industry way back in 1998.
In 2025, Jimmy Fallon is living his best life. The 50-year-old is an iconic former Saturday Night Live cast member, and he hosts The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. But it wasn't always that way.
Back in 1995, Fallon was a relative unknown. After moving to Los Angeles at the age of 21, he joined the Groundlings improv comedy troupe to hone his comedic skills. He finally got the opportunity to audition for SNL in 1997, an audition that did not lead to him joining the show. However, he was invited back to audition one more time a year later and Fallon made the most of his second chance.
In a wild February 17 Instagram post, Fallon shared a video of his full 1998 SNL audition that fans have to see to believe. In fact, the version of Fallon in the video is not anyone fans are used to seeing. The then-23-year-old was clearly rattled and nervous throughout his audition. Still, that didn't stop him from making a huge impact on the casting directors and eventually joining SNL starting in Season 24!
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"My SNL audition. I was so nervous. I want to thank Lorne Michaels for everything," Fallon said in a caption.
However, his nerves didn't get the best of him as he flew through a litany of impressions. No celebrity was safe from Fallon as he did everyone from Jerry Seinfeld to Adam Sandler to U2's Bono! (His Sandler impression was specifically on point!)
Jimmy Fallon reveals how badly he wanted to be part of Saturday Night Live
For Fallon, making it onto the legendary sketch comedy show was his only goal — there was no backup plan. In a 2011 interview with Rolling Stone, the star didn't pull any punches when he described how badly he wanted to be on the show.
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"I remember saying to myself, 'If I don't make it on [the show] before I'm 25, I'm going to kill myself.' It's crazy. I had no other plan. I didn't have friends, I didn't have a girlfriend, I didn't have anything going on. I had my career, that was it."
As it turned out, Fallon reached his goal two years early — and he's still living his dream today.
