Chris Rock

Unlike James Franco’s Saturday Night, which took viewers behind the scenes of the making of just one episode of SNL, Live From New York! presents an audio-visual history of the whole series. With the help of lots of familiar faces, including those who have hosted the show throughout its run, the new documentary traces the existence of SNL from its early days to now. The first trailer for Live From New York! is here, giving you a little taste of what the doc has in store.

We knew going in that the SNL 40th anniversary special would be chock-full of just about every famous person who has ever walked within spitting distance of 30 Rockefeller Plaza and the opening monologue was quick to make use of this genuinely insane temporary cast of stars. Things got started on the right foot when the always-welcome Steve Martin took the stage ... but then he was joined by Tom Hanks. And then things got really crazy.

Merciful Zeus, if you thought Eddie Murphy returning to ‘SNL’ after 31 years for the 40th anniversary special on February 15 was big enough, wait until you get a load of the full roster. Rivaling turnout for the Emmys and Oscars combined, the upcoming ‘SNL’ reunion will feature everyone from legendary alumni like Bill Murray, Tina Fey and Chevy Chase, to favorite hosts like Alec Baldwin, and even Taylor Swift, why not!

Chris Rock has made movies before, but ‘Top Five’ is the first great “Chris Rock movie,” the one that feels like the product of the best and most important stand-up comic of his generation. ‘Top Five’ is infused from top to bottom with Rock’s voice, his humor, and also his love of movies. Rock, a self-avowed cinephile, has borrowed liberally from some of his favorite films (including Richard Linklater’s ‘Before Sunset,’ Preston Sturges’ ‘Sullivans Travels,’ and Woody Allen’s ‘Stardust Memories’) in creating the story of a disillusioned stand-up comic turned sellout movie star on the cusp of becoming a “serious” actor. The way Rock digests his inspirations, filters them through his own unique perspective, and spits them back out on the screen as something wholly his own recalls the way Quentin Tarantino turns exploitation obscurities into prestigious arthouse fare.

Comedian/actor/writer/director Chris Rock has already proven that he can do just about everything -- and do it pretty well, if his upcoming feature 'Top Five' is any indication -- but the funny man almost had another major career move bulleted on his resume. Before Rock made it big as an actor, he dabbled in the disc jockey arts, deeming his own skills to be "nice!" After the DJing came a deal for a rap record, which was made, but never released, a weird bit of trivia that Rock shared with Jimmy Fallon on 'The Tonight Show' last night.

Last month we checked out the first green band trailer for ‘Top Five,’ but now Chris Rock’s directorial debut has revealed a red band trailer, which also reveals all of that NSFW language and humor that the first trailer had to hold back. Rock may be taking his leap from actor and comedian to director seriously, but you didn’t think a film directed by Chris Rock would be totally void of F-bombs, did you?

As is often the case these days, the funniest sketch on last night's episode of 'SNL' wasn't built around the guest host or a celebrity impersonation. In fact, this one doesn't even feature host Chris Rock. It does, however, feature Beck Bennett and Kyle Mooney in two the lead roles, only further cementing them as the funniest guys on this show at the moment.

Last night's Chris Rock-hosted episode of 'SNL' saw a handful of sketches that seemed interested in crossing lines of good taste and/or grotesqueness, but there was only one that dealt exclusively with inserting cameras up your rear end. Enter the commercial parody for "GoProbe," the world's coolest and most exciting way to have a, uh, colonoscopy.

It's nearly impossible to be a connoisseur of modern popular culture without finding yourself listening to a Taylor Swift song every now and again. Despite your best efforts, it's easy to hear one of her songs, not realize that it's her, declare your love for it and then realize exactly what has happened. Believe it or not, this is an actual medical condition and 'SNL' and Swiftamine are here to save the day!

Chris Rock’s hosted ‘SNL’ was, well, a bit of a mess. Which all seemed even more surprising after the obviously fired up Rock’s monologue – there just seemed to be so much energy! And then there wasn’t. ‘SNL’ has been really great so far this season, so of course after the first what can be called a misfire of the season, there were all the naysayers on Twitter, lamenting how ‘SNL’ isn’t funny anymore. Oh, puh-leeze. The reason ‘SNL’ is like nothing else is that it can go wrong; it’s what makes the show interesting.