'SNL' Seeking Sponsors for Season 40

08.04.2014

NBC's "Saturday Night Live" is seeking in-program sponsors to help support it in its 40th anniversary season, reports Variety's Brian Steinberg.Â

"More sponsors are seeking alliances with specific progams and networks rather than simply spraying 30-second commercials across dozens of TV outlets," he writes.

"SNL" is no stranger to mixing business with pleasure. The show's MacGruber skits, which spoofed MacGyver and starred Will Forte, began life as Pepsi commercials and ultimately evolved into a movie. Apple and Budweiser both have sponsored the show's first musical segment, getting a promotional message on screen at the end of the performance in exchange for doing so. And many "SNL" stars through the years have starred in commercials. One, Beck Bennett, was featured in AT&T's "It's Not Complicated" campaign, before the actor ended up joining "SNL" last season.

Still, "SNL"'s storied executive producer, Lorne Michaels, traditionally has been hesitant to incorporate sponsors due to fear that they would limit the show's freedom.

"Because the show regularly skewers advertisers and sundry political targets, the merest trespass of a paying sponsor onto "SNL's" satirical playing ground might trigger viewer pushback. Making advertising too much a part of the show might also create the sense that "SNL" is not free to pursue targets as it sees fit," writes Steinberg.Â

Some of the shows most popular skits have come in the form of short-form videos, which eventually go viral, such as Tina Fey's "Brownie Husband" (above), Mom Jeans and the CNN Pregnancy Test.

Should "SNL" welcome more in-program sponsors in season 40, it would not be alone at Comcast-owned NBC. "The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon" includes segments sponsored by General Electric, while Tina Fey's "30 Rock" frequently included sponsors such as Verizon Wireless and Snapple.Â