When Kate McKinnon joined the "Saturday Night Live" cast in 2012, she was already prolific in the comedy world. From 2006 to 2010, she was a main cast member of "The Big Gay Sketch Show." However, "SNL" established her as a mainstream comedic performer.
McKinnon working with a cat in her Hellmann's Super Bowl commercial evokes a recurring cat lady she plays on "SNL" named Barbara DeDrew, dating back to 2014. While she left the "SNL" cast in 2022, she reprised the Barbara character in 2023 in a sketch with Billie Eilish. Meanwhile, the ad's environmental message — maybe unintentionally, maybe not — recalls McKinnon playing Greta Thunberg in a 2019 "SNL" episode.
The strength of her extensive sketch comedy work landed McKinnon several movie roles. Between her "SNL" debut and "Barbie," she appeared in "Ted 2," the 2016 "Ghostbusters" movie, "Office Christmas Party," "The Spy Who Dumped Me," and "Bombshell," among other films. She's also a prolific voice actor, playing significant parts in "The Angry Birds Movie," "Ferdinand," "The Magic School Bus Rides Again," and "DC League of Super-Pets." Her first Super Bowl commercial is building on more than a decade in the public eye.
