It has become a ritual in the national sport of culture watching to trace the trajectory of the most beloved Saturday Night Live (SNL) cast members as they evolve — or don’t — into life beyond the mothership. Bill Hader, who was on SNL from 2005 to 2013, has definitely blossomed since his departure, lending his voice to numerous animated films, participating in the clever mockumentary series Documentary Now!, and starring in the Amy Schumer hit Trainwreck.
Now Hader is back on TV as a reluctant hitman on HBO’s fab new show, Barry, whose dazzling series opener (also directed by Hader) is a prize unto itself. Barry is a comedy of the dark sort, about an assassin and former U.S. Marine (Hader) who is very good at his job but is seeking another way of life and livelihood. In collaboration with Alec Berg (writer/director connected to Seinfeld, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and Sacha Baron Cohen vehicle The Dictator), Hader has thrown his energies into the new show, and on the evidence of the two episodes aired so far, it’s a thumbs-up scenario all the way around.
Who woulda thunk that the burned-out hitman genre is where Hader would find a place to shine? But yes, there is our man Hader, beloved for his uncanny knack to slip into bizarre SNL characters such as the kinky N.Y.C. tour guide Stefon; the bumbling, cynical TV reporter Herb Welch (who insults his subjects in the field and bonks them with his oversize microphone); or the Italian cinema snob/talk-show host Vinny Vedecci. Like Kristen Wiig, Hader was an empty vessel of a personality unto himself but sprang zanily to life once thrown into character, endearing himself to the American collective memory.