Jon Hamm Says He Owes His Career toSNLCreator Lorne Michaels: 'I'll Be Forever Grateful to Him'

Mar. 15, 2025

Jon Hamm (left); Lorne Michaels.Photo:Joseph Okpako/WireImage; Mike Coppola/Getty

Joseph Okpako/WireImage; Mike Coppola/Getty

Jon Hammsays he will be “forever grateful” toSaturday Night LivecreatorLorne Michaelsfor his prolific career.

Speaking with reporters following his crowning as the 2025 Hasty Pudding Man of the Year at Harvard in Cambridge, Mass., on Friday, Jan. 31, the 53-year-old actor shared that Michaels, 80, gave him a chance to showcase that his talents extend beyond dramatic roles.

Hamm went on to explain that amid the success ofMad Men— in which he portrayed Don Draper, the enigmatic creative director of a fictional New York City advertising agency in the 1960s — he “was offered a lot of roles that were a version of that character where you had been smoking a cigarette and sort of brooding, looking out a window into the dark city of some kind of place.”

“So I figured, I will do that for my day job,” Hamm continued, referring to becoming a go-to for those kinds of dramatic roles. “But I think there’s more stuff out [there] to do.”

Jon Hamm guest hosts ‘Saturday Night Live’ in October 2008.Dana Edelson/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty

Dana Edelson/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty

“I really credit none other than Lorne Michaels for offering me a [chance to] guest hostSaturday Night Live[for the first time in 2008] to really get the sense of, well, I do have a funny side to me,” he told reporters at the event.

He explained, “Most of the people who knew me before they knew me forMad Menknew that was the predominant side of me. So Lorne gave me that opportunity, which led to30 Rock, which led toBridesmaids, which led to a lot of other gigs in theTina Fey, Robert Carlock, Lorne Michaels universe.”

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Hamm — who went on to guest hostSNLtwo more times in 2010 — added: “So I’ll be forever grateful to [Michaels] for that.”

Jon Hamm (left) and Lorne Michaels in October 2018.Stephen Lovekin/BAFTA/Shutterstock

Stephen Lovekin/BAFTA/Shutterstock

While he appreciates the diversification of his acting résumé, Hamm said his breakout role inMad Men"will always be a high-water mark in my life and career." He described starring as Draper as one of the most challenging, yet fun roles he has tackled to date.

“It will be I think 10 years since we wrapped the show and 20 years this year since we started the show, so it’s fading in the rearview, but it’s still very prevalent in my life,” he said of the series, which aired on AMC from 2007 to 2015.

Hamm recently shared thathe thought he’d “never” get cast inMad Menafter losing out on aWest Wingrole that ultimately went toRob Lowe. “I’d had an experience with another really good script that I read and I was like, ‘I would do anything to get this part,’ " he toldThe Hollywood Reporterin June 2024.

“And I was great in the audition, but I saw the casting director’s face, and I knew this part’s already cast. Then it was like, ‘Oh, it’s Rob Lowe. OK, I get it,’ " Hamm recalled to the outlet. “So I thought the same thing would happen onMad Men. I’ll give a great audition, and they’ll give it to a movie star.”

Jon Hamm holds his award at Harvard Theatricals' 2025 Hasty Pudding Many of the Year event on Jan. 31.Matthew J. Lee/The Boston Globe via Getty

Matthew J. Lee/The Boston Globe via Getty

“I have no idea what it would look like,” Hamm toldIndieWireof the potential project. “I think it would just have to be funny and fun and it would let us do what we both do very well, which is be charming and funny and compelling. I certainly wouldn’t say no to that.”

source: people.com