'SNL' Fans Debate Who's the Best Cast Member of All Time—'GOAT Quality'

Saturday Night Live fans and even former cast members got into a heated debate online trying to answer a question which surely has no correct answer: "Who is the best SNL cast member of all time?"

Lorne Michaels' creation is close to celebrating its 50th year on the air, and in that time, hundreds of cast members have starred on the cultural phenomenon on NBC. It has made stars of the likes of Chevy Chase, Jane Curtin, Bill Murray, Eddie Murphy, Will Ferrell, Kristen Wiig and more, but there have also been underutilized and underappreciated stars at Studio 8H during that time.

Freelance music journalist Eric Alper tweeted out a simple question this week which pulled in thousands of responses. "Who is the best SNL cast member of all time?" he asked. Fans weighed in and former cast members and comedians also offered their own takes on who they believe is number 1.

Laraine Newman was 23 years old when she appeared in the first episode on October 11, 1975, as paert of the original nine-person cast. Responding to Alper's question, she offered up four names: "Dan [Aykroyd], Phil Hartman, [Kristen] Wiig and Jan Hooks." Aykroyd was part of the original cast with Newman, while Hartman and Hooks were members of the late-80s renaissance for SNL, and Wiig starred across the 2000s and 2010s. Responding to fans, Newman also said she loved Cecily Strong, who recently left the show.

Comedian David Wain, who created movies like Wet Hot American Summer and Role Models, also offered up his own suggestions. "Bill Murray for vibe, Kenan Thompson for MVP," Wain wrote.

Actress Lisa Ann Walter (Abbott Elementary) chose some originals for her choice. From "The Not Ready for Prime Time Players." Walter selected Gilda Radner and John Belushi."

Comedy writer Robert Smigel, famous for creating and voicing the character Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, replied that one name hadn't been mentioned as much as it should have. "Kind of shocked not see this guy's name all over this thread. It's all subjective, of course, but I don't think any SNL cast member had more success at every aspect of sketch comedy than Will Ferrell," Smigel wrote, sharing a selection of images of the comedian appearing on the show. The pictures highlighted Ferrell in the "Cowbell" sketch, as a Spartan cheerleader, as Alex Trebek on Celebrity Jeopardy! and as George W. Bush.

Joe Nieves, who played Carl the bartender in How I Met Your Mother and How I Met Your Father was firm with his response. "Eddie Murphy is the only answer," he wrote. Murphy joined the cast at 19, and became a breakout star of Saturday Night Live as it went through a tumultuous time in the early 80s. In 2015, Rolling Stone cited Murphy as the "only reason SNL survived the five-year wilderness without Lorne Michaels."

Other notable faces weighed in with their choices. Billions actor Terry Kinney chose Gilda Radner, sports columnist Bob Ryan voted for Phil Hartman, The Young Turks pundit John Iadarola selected Cecily Strong, while notable horror movie actor Bill Moseley said Eddie Murphy.

While there was dozens of other names offered up by fans, including the likes of Dana Carvey, Bill Hader, Kate McKinnon, Amy Poehler and more, there was one answer that appeared to have received more "likes" than any other.

"It is difficult sometimes to separate a cast member from the ensemble," wrote Twitter user @OhioBIkeLawyer. "That early ensemble was Hall of Fame/GOAT quality," he wrote, including a black and white picture of the original cast.

The Not Ready for Prime Time Players striking comedic poses in the photo are Laraine Newman, John Belushi, Jane Curtin, Gilda Radner, Garrett Morris, Dan Aykroyd, and Chevy Chase. George Coe was credited as an original cast member in the first episode though he did appear in others that first season, according to Rolling Stone, and Michael O'Donoghue uttered the first lines of the debut episode but he had a more behind-the-scenes role throughout his stint at SNL.