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How Saoirse Ronan Embarrassed Herself in Front of Lorne Michaels

Lady Bird actress recalls a moment during her Saturday Night Live debut she'll never forget

By Amanda Rothenberg Feb 22, 2018 6:00 PMTags

With her first Golden Globes win, third Oscar nomination and a Saturday Night Live hosting debutSaoirse Ronan has had a memorable few months.

The Lady Bird star sits down with Sunday Today's Willie Geist to talk about her love of comedy and to spill details on how she managed to embarrass herself in front of SNL's Lorne Michaels.

Ronan says, "I grew up watching things like Seinfeld and Curb Your Enthusiasm... The Three Amigos is mine and my dad's favorite film."

In her wildest dreams, she could've never imagined that she'd actually meet one of the writers of that very movie. On her first day on the SNL set, Ronan visited Michaels' office to discuss the week's plans. She describes the entire experience as "mad," saying, "You don't know what to expect."

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Saoirse Ronan's Best Looks

As Saoirse was leaving the executive producer's office, she saw a poster for The Three Amigos. Looking to connect with Michaels she asked, "Do you like The Three Amigos too?" The Hollywood vet responded, "I wrote [it]. It's my film."

Will Heath/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

Nonetheless, Ronan redeemed herself with an epic performance on the December episode, beginning with an epic opening monologue.

Leslie Jones joined the actress onstage, calling her Cersei (Yes, like Lena Headey's Game of Thrones character). Ronan corrected Jones by explaining, "It's Saoirse, like inertia!" She then broke into a whimsical song about the pronunciation of her name. 

The episode went on to feature a variety of sketches playing on her Irish heritage and the ever-growing #MeToo movement, with her "Welcome to Hell" parody music video sparking the most buzz. Safe to say Ronan's SNL performance made Michaels forget all about her little misstep!

Between Saturday Night Love and Lady Bird, Saoirse has definitely made a name for herself—now only if everyone could pronounce it...  

Watch the full interview with Willie Geist Sunday on NBC.

(E! and NBC are both part of the same NBCUniversal family.)