Karine Jean-Pierre talks ‘Saturday Night Live,’ and why she might not catch an impression of herself

Actor Jason Sudeikis embraces White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre
Greg Nash
Actor Jason Sudeikis embraces White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre during the daily briefing at the White House in Washington, D.C., on Monday, March 20, 2023. The cast of ‘Ted Lasso’ will meet with President Biden and first lady Jill Biden to discuss mental health initiatives.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre says if “Saturday Night Live” ever features an impersonation of her, she’s unlikely to catch it, because she’s usually taking a Saturday night snooze.

“I think I’m usually sleeping,” Jean-Pierre replied when asked if she’s able to enjoy shows like “SNL” on the weekend or if they hit too close to home for her by parodying the headlines of the day.

“I just need the sleep, and I see the clips on social media,” Jean-Pierre said with a grin when ITK caught up with her at a recent gala event in Washington.

“So I haven’t stayed up for ‘SNL’ in a long, long time,” she said.

While Melissa McCarthy became somewhat of a regular on the NBC sketch comedy show for her weekly lampooning of former White House press secretary Sean Spicer during former President Trump’s years in office, a “Saturday Night Live” cast member has never imitated the current spokeswoman at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

So is Jean-Pierre just waiting to wake up on a Sunday morning to see “SNL’s” take on her time behind the briefing room podium?

“Well, I don’t know if I’m waiting,” Jean-Pierre, 48, said with a big laugh. “We’ll see — oh boy.”

But, Jean-Pierre — who became the first Black and the first openly LGBTQ person to serve as White House press secretary when she began in the role last May — suggested she might take any potential “SNL”-style ribbing in stride.

“Laughing and laughing at yourself, being able to take in just a little bit of the lightness of it all, and not take things too seriously — I think it’s important.”

Tags Karine Jean-Pierre Karine Jean-Pierre Saturday Night Live Sean Spicer

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