SNL stars, known for appearing in fake ads, are in hot demand to star in real commercials

Variety

"Several of SNL’s popular players have in recent months started showing their stuff on a decidedly different stage," says Variety's Brian Steinberg. "Kenan Thompson, who has been with SNL since 2003, recently began holding amusing conversations with talking kitchen appliances as he shops for a car in a commercial from Autotrader. Aidy Bryant has been spotted dancing in ads for Old Navy. Kate McKinnon hasn’t been on SNL so far this season due to outside projects, but she has been trying to make people smile in spots for Verizon and PepsiCo’s Tostitos. Pete Davidson gets his tattoos removed in recent ads for Coca-Cola’s smartwater. And Chloe Fineman, a relative newcomer to the SNL ranks, has struck an alliance with J. Crew’s Madewell. SNL cast have appeared in commercials in the recent past. McKinnon has done ads for Ford and Cecily Strong has held forth for Mondelez International’s Triscuits. Leslie Jones once did an ad for Allstate and Michael Che appeared with Tina Fey in a commercial for American Express. Last year, however, Saturday Night Live was the most-watched traditional TV series among viewers between 18 and 49, the demographic most coveted by advertisers in entertainment programming. The cast of SNL, once billed as 'The Not Ready For Prime Time Players,' is more than adequately prepared as far as Madison Avenue is concerned."