Austin Butler Got SNL Advice From The Show’s Best Guest Host
Actor Austin Butler has quickly become a household name, largely due to his acclaimed performance earlier this year as Elvis Presley in director Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis. With a name that has been rumored to be in contention for an Academy Award this year for Best Actor, Butler is helping to promote his work by hosting Saturday Night Live in an upcoming episode. Entertainment Weekly spoke to Austin Butler in the midst of the filming of Dune: Part Two, spoke to costar Christopher Walken about his upcoming gig as host of the late-night sketch show.
In talking to Austin Butler about whether or not he should host Saturday Night Live, Christopher Walken noted that he shouldn’t give up the chance and told Butler, “You gotta do it!” After discussing it further with fellow actor and former SNL host Timothée Chalamet, Butler decided to jump at the chance and will be making his debut as host of the show on December 17. The musical guest for Butler’s episode will be the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and because of his working relationship with at least two former hosts, it wouldn’t be surprising if either of them made a cameo appearance.
Before Austin Butler consulted Christopher Walken about accepting the hosting duties on Saturday Night Live, the latter had hosted on the show 7 times, and made pop culture relevant when he played music producer Bruce Dickinson in a scene with Will Ferrell known as “More Cowbell.” As for Timothée Chalamet, the Bones and All actor last hosted Saturday Night Live back in December 2020 amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, and will most likely return as host again in the future.
Timothée Chalamet, Austin Butler, and Christopher Walken have been busy filming Dune: Part Two in parts of Europe. The sequel to 2021’s Dune based on the novel of the same name by Frank Herbert and is directed by Arrival’s Denis Villeneauve. It is set to be released in theaters by Warner Bros. Pictures in November 2023.
Joining the three men in the film are fellow actors Josh Brolin, Rebecca Ferguson, Javier Bardem, Stellan Skarsgård, Dave Bautista, Zendaya, and Florence Pugh.
Dune was a success for Warner Bros. upon its release, which has a streaming debut on HBO Max simultaneously when it debuted in theaters. The sequel that costars Austin Butler and Christopher Walken comes at a time when Warner Bros. Discovery is seeing a massive change at the company, as layoffs and titles being removed from its slate of films seem to be happening almost daily.
Hopefully, Butler’s appearance on Saturday Night Live as host of the show will garner a bit of attention for the young actor as he promotes not only his turn in Elvis, but also the upcoming sequel to Dune that has long been in the works.
