By the time the mid-2000s arrived, Lindsay Lohan was already in two iconic teen dramas, Freaky Friday and Mean Girls, and the latter’s success led Lohan to host her first SNL in 2004. Although the Freaky Friday Star was invited back to perform three more times, her first instance going live from the 30 Rockefeller Plaza saw the actor walking off the set.
While SNL performers are told not to break character during the sketch, it wasn’t easy for Lohan as she had no prior experience dealing with a live crowd, and Jimmy Fallon’s contagious laugh didn’t help.
Jimmy Fallon’s Contagious Laughter Was Too Much for Lindsay Lohan
Often considered one of the best characters in SNL, Rachel Dratch’s Debbie Downer, known for bringing up tragic facts irrespective of the situation, made her debut in the Lindsay Lohan-led episode. And Lohan was far from ready to handle the hilarity of Downer, as she wasn’t able to hold herself together. While Lohan initially planned that she wouldn’t look at Jimmy Fallon to avoid breaking her character, she couldn’t help but stare at the laughing Fallon. This eventually led to her breaking her character amidst dialogues, leading her to flee off the set.
She told Vogue:
“I just remember thinking, ‘If I just don’t look at Jimmy Fallon, then I’ll be fine.’ And all I kept doing, in the live, was looking at him. I actually got so nervous at the end, and I couldn’t stop laughing that I just burst, and I walked off, because I didn’t want to get in trouble.”
Fortunately, the Falling for Christmas Star didn’t get in trouble, as everyone broke character and started laughing, including Dratch, and the entire sketch became a classic.
Despite Technically Failing, Lindsay Lohan Loved Every Second of It
Even though Lindsay Lohan technically failed to do her part right, in the end, it didn’t matter, as everyone was having a good time. The Mean Girls Star even deemed it as one of her favorite experiences, stating that she never had that much fun doing anything else.
“I feel like that was one of the best experiences, just altogether in everything I’ve ever done, because I’ve never had so much fun just doing something. And just when everyone becomes, like, it becomes just contagious laughter. It’s just the best. And then the audience can’t help but laugh. I think that’s the funniest on SNL, when people just break and lose it, because it’s so real.”
Thankfully, Lohan was again brought back to host on three more occasions – 2005, 2006, and 2012, and Rachel Dratch’s Debbie Downer continued leaving fans giggling with the tragic facts and news.
