Cast member Mikey Day, originally scheduled to appear, will not be attending due to a personal matter.

“I’m thrilled to be joining my friend Streeter Seidell as we bring a little bit of Studio 8H to Jamestown,” said Johnson. “It’s an honor to be part of the National Comedy Center’s festival and to talk about comedy and the beautiful chaos of making Saturday Night Live.”

Johnson joined SNL in 2021 and has quickly emerged as one of the show’s most versatile cast members. Known for his sharp, imaginative character work – including viral impressions of Joe Biden, Adam Driver, and Donald Trump – Johnson is frequently featured in the show’s cold open, leading SNL’s take on current events with standout performances. His film and TV credits include voicing “Pouchy” in Pixar’s Inside Out 2 and the Grinch in Wondery’s podcast series Tis the Grinch Holiday Podcast, roles in Barry, Better Call Saul, She Said and Hail, Caesar!, and a cameo in the acclaimed Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown.

Seidell has shaped the creative voice of Saturday Night Live since joining the writing staff in 2014 and rising to head writer in 2022. Alongside Mikey Day, he’s co-authored many of SNL’s most talked-about sketches – including Washington’s Dream, Haunted Elevator (with Tom Hanks as David S. Pumpkins), the Alien Encounter series, and the Beavis & Butt‒Head parody starring Ryan Gosling. A pioneering comedy creator with roots at CollegeHumor and a screenwriter for Disney reboots like Home Alone and Inspector Gadget, Seidell continues to lead sketch comedy across platforms.

James Austin Johnson

This special event also coincides with the accession of the original cue cards from the Washington’s Dream into the National Comedy Center’s permanent collection – commemorating a viral, fan-favorite sketch co-written by Seidell, featuring Nate Bargatze as well as James Austin Johnson.

Tickets, which include admission to the National Comedy Center, are available at ComedyCenter.org/Festival.