Michael Che

Michael Che Campbell (born May 19,[1] 1983)[2] is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and writer. He is best known for his work on Saturday Night Live, where he serves as co-anchor on Weekend Update and co-head writer. Che and Colin Jost were named co-hosts of the 70th Primetime Emmy Awards.[3]

Michael Che
Che in 2015
Birth nameMichael Che Campbell
Born (1983-05-19) May 19, 1983
New York City, New York, U.S.
Medium
EducationFiorello H. LaGuardia High School
Years active2009–present
Genres
Subject(s)
Notable works and rolesWeekend Update anchor, The Daily Show correspondent, Saturday Night Live writer

Che was briefly a correspondent for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and has previously worked as a writer for Saturday Night Live. At the end of September 2014, he became a Weekend Update co-anchor for the 40th season of Saturday Night Live alongside Colin Jost, replacing Cecily Strong.[4]

Early life

Michael Che Campbell was born in Manhattan, New York City, New York, the youngest of seven children of Rose and Nathaniel Campbell.[5] His father, a history buff, named Michael after the revolutionary Che Guevara.[6]

Che was raised on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. He graduated from the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts.[7][8]

Career

Beginnings and Saturday Night Live

Che started doing stand-up comedy in 2009, regularly working several sets per night.[9] In 2012, Che appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman.[9][10] In 2013, Variety called Che one of "10 Comics to Watch",[11] while Rolling Stone named him one of "The 50 Funniest People."[7]

Che joined Saturday Night Live as a writer in 2013, at first as a guest writer and soon after as staff writer.[9] On April 28, 2014, it was announced that Che would join The Daily Show in June as a correspondent.[10][12] Che made his onscreen debut as a Daily Show correspondent on June 4. Although he appeared in only nine segments during his brief tenure on the show, he was lauded by TV Guide for his work. His signature piece for the Daily Show was "Race/Off: Live From Somewhere", a satirical commentary on the 2014 Ferguson protests. In this segment, Che "reported" from various locations (with frequent background changes accomplished via chroma key), looking for a place where a black man would not be harassed by police officers. The sketch ended with Che floating in outer space.[13]

On September 11, 2014, it was announced that Che would take over Cecily Strong's position as a Weekend Update co-anchor for the 40th season of SNL, co-anchoring the segment with Colin Jost.[4] Che is the first African-American co-anchor in the history of Weekend Update.[14] During his first two seasons, Che primarily hosted Weekend Update and rarely appeared in any sketches. During his third season, Che was promoted to the main cast. In December 2017, Che was named co-head writer of Saturday Night Live.[15] Vulture.com's Megh Wright complimented the Weekend Update joke-swapping segment where Che writes shockingly racist jokes for Jost to deliver.[16]

Other appearances

In 2014, Che appeared in the movie Top Five, appearing as one of Chris Rock's character's friends.[17]

On September 17, 2018, Che co-hosted the Emmy Awards with Colin Jost.[18] Che and Jost also appeared on the March 4, 2019, episode of WWE's Monday Night Raw, where both were announced as special correspondents for WrestleMania 35. The pair got involved in a storyline with wrestler Braun Strowman, which eventually resulted in Che and Jost becoming participants in the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania.[19]

Controversies

In the run-up to Super Bowl LI, Che called Boston "the most racist city" he has visited and refused to apologize.[20] Che is also known for feuding with critics and fellow comedians, including Steven Hyden and Jack Allison.[21][22][23]

Filmography

Film
Year Film Role Notes
2013 Chinese Puzzle Un passant
2014 Lyle Threes
2014 Top Five Paul

Television
Year Series Role Notes
2012 John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show Himself Episode: "3.5"
2013–present Saturday Night Live Himself, Various Also head writer
2014 The Half Hour Himself Stand-up special
2014 The Daily Show Himself 9 episodes
2016 Michael Che Matters Himself Stand-up special
2017 Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday Himself 3 episodes; also head writer
2018 70th Primetime Emmy Awards Himself (host) TV special
2019 Sesame Street Himself Guest
2019 WWE Raw Himself Special guest (2 episodes)[24][19][25]
2019 WrestleMania 35 Himself Special guest

Awards and honors
Year Award Nominated work Result
2015 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety (Including Talk) – Series[26] Saturday Night Live Nominated
2016 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety – Sketch Series[27] Saturday Night Live Nominated
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series[28] Saturday Night Live Nominated
2017 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety – Sketch Series[29] Saturday Night Live Won
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series[30] Saturday Night Live Nominated
2018 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety – Sketch Series[31] Saturday Night Live Won
Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety – Sketch Series[31] Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday Nominated
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series[32] Saturday Night Live Nominated
2019 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety – Sketch Series[33] Saturday Night Live Nominated
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series[34] Saturday Night Live Nominated
2020 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety – Sketch Series[35] Saturday Night Live Nominated

References
  1. "Michael Che Repertory Player/Weekend Update Co-Anchor Bio". NBC. Archived from the original on April 16, 2020. Retrieved April 16, 2020. Che is a native of Manhattan and currently resides in the city. His birthday is May 19.
  2. Raptopoulos, Lilah (September 15, 2014). "Michael Che and Pete Davidson: meet SNL's two newest cast members". The Guardian. UK. Archived from the original on October 18, 2015. Retrieved April 16, 2020. Che, 31,...
  3. Bradley, Laura. "Colin Jost and Michael Che on Their Emmys Debut". Vanity Fair.
  4. Carter, Bill (September 11, 2014). "New Comic to Anchor 'Update' on 'S.N.L.'". The New York Times. Retrieved September 11, 2014.
  5. Seabaugh, Julie (June 3, 2014). "How New York Comedian Michael Che Willed His Way to SNL and The Daily Show". Runnin' Scared; Village Voice. Archived from the original on October 19, 2014. Retrieved October 22, 2014.
  6. "Talking to Michael Che About Touring the World and Making Standup Glamorous". Splitsider. Archived from the original on September 16, 2014. Retrieved October 22, 2014.
  7. "The 50 Funniest People Now". Rolling Stone. January 24, 2013. Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  8. Angelo, Megan (November 2, 2012). "City-Bred Comic Has His Heart in the Club". The New York Times. Retrieved August 27, 2014.
  9. Greenstein, Colette (February 20, 2014). "Comedian Michael Che talks stand-up, SNL writing gig". The Bay State Banner. Boston, Massachusetts. p. 15.
  10. Busis, Hillary (April 28, 2014). "Michael Che: 5 things to know". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved April 28, 2014.
  11. Andrew Barker Senior Features Writer @barkerrant (July 17, 2013). "10 Comics to Watch: 'SNL' Writer Michael Che Hones Chops in Edinburgh". Variety. Retrieved April 28, 2014.
  12. Hal Boedeker. "Daily Show names Michael Che correspondent". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on April 29, 2014. Retrieved April 28, 2014.
  13. Rudolph, Ileane (July 27, 2015). "Alumni Association: A roundup of The Daily Show's coolest Graduates". TV Guide. pp 21-22.
  14. Dawn, Randee. "'Saturday Night Live' taps Michael Che as first black Weekend Update anchor". Retrieved September 12, 2014.
  15. Robinson, Joanna (December 13, 2017). "Saturday Night Live Makes Its Most Baffling Move Yet". Vanity Fair. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
  16. Wright, Megh (May 20, 2019). "SNL's Weekend Update Is Best When Colin Jost and Michael Che Torture Each Other". Vulture. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  17. Sandoval, Lapacazo (December 11, 2014). "Rock makes another hit with 'Top Five'". New York Amsterdam News. New York, New York. p. 18.
  18. Gajanan, Mahita (September 18, 2018). "Here Are the Best Jokes From Michael Che and Colin Jost's Emmys 2018 Monologue". Time. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
  19. Powell, Jason (March 4, 2019). "3/4 Powell's WWE Raw TV Review: Triple H's response to Batista attacking Ric Flair, Charlotte Flair wants Vince McMahon to name her the Raw Women's Champion, SNL Weekend Update hosts appear, final hype for WWE Fastlane". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  20. "'SNL' star doesn't back away from Boston racism comment". WGME. Associated Press. March 25, 2017. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  21. Colburn, Randall. "Why is SNL's Michael Che so obsessed with his critics?". AV Club.
  22. Russo, Amy. "Michael Che Berates Culture Writer in Vulgar Rant For Mocking 'SNL' Co-Star Colin Jost". HuffPost.
  23. Nordine, Michael. "Michael Che Smears Journalist Who Wrote About 'SNL' Co-Star Colin Jost". IndieWire.
  24. "SNL "Weekend Update" hosts Michael Che & Colin Jost to be special guests on Raw". WWE. March 3, 2019.
  25. Powell, Jason (March 25, 2019). "3/25 Powell's WWE Raw TV Review: Ronda Rousey, Becky Lynch, and Charlotte Flair face Riott Squad in Beat The Clock Challenge matches, Kurt Angle vs. Samoa Joe, the penultimate edition before WrestleMania 35". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  26. McNary, Dave (December 4, 2014). "'Game of Thrones,' 'True Detective,' 'Transparent' Lead WGA TV Nominations". Variety. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
  27. McNary, Dave (January 6, 2016). "'The Martian,' 'Straight Outta Compton' Land Writers Guild Nominations". Variety. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
  28. Lewis, Dave (July 14, 2016). "Nominations for the 68th Primetime Emmy Awards". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
  29. Petski, Denise. "WGA TV Nominations: 'The Americans', 'Stranger Things', 'Westworld', 'This Is Us' Among Nominees". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 7, 2016.
  30. "Emmys 2017: Full List of Nominations". Variety. July 13, 2017. Retrieved July 13, 2017.
  31. Pedersen, Erik (December 7, 2017). "WGA Awards: Top TV Noms Include 'Handmaid's Tale', 'Stranger Things', 'The Americans', 'GLOW'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 13, 2017.
  32. "Emmys: Netflix Beats HBO With Most Nominations". The Hollywood Reporter. July 12, 2018. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
  33. McNary, Dave (December 6, 2018). "Writers Guild Awards Announces 2019 TV Nominees". Variety. Retrieved December 8, 2018.
  34. Aridi, Sara (July 16, 2019). "Here's a Full List of the 2019 Emmy Nominations". The New York Times. Retrieved July 16, 2019.
  35. Pedersen, Erik (July 22, 2019). "WGA Sets Writers Guild Awards 2019–20 Timeline". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 24, 2019.
Media offices
Preceded by
Colin Jost and Cecily Strong		 Weekend Update anchor with Colin Jost
September 27, 2014 – present		 Succeeded by
Incumbent
Preceded by
Chris Kelly, Sarah Schneider, Bryan Tucker, and Kent Sublette		 SNL Head Writer
(with Colin Jost, Bryan Tucker, and Kent Sublette)
December 16, 2017 – present		 Succeeded by
Incumbent
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