John Goodman on His ‘SNL’ Audition: “The Worst Thing I’ve Ever Done in Front of People”

Appearing 13 times on Saturday Night Live has made John Goodman the third most frequent entertainer to host the NBC variety show, but The Conners star says his cast audition wasn’t one for the history books.

While stopping by The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon Friday to promote two of his shows, the award-winning actor spoke about performing a monologue alongside the late night host and SNL alum written by Adam McKay and how cast members would come to the floor to watch Will Ferrell when a skit was bombing.

But Goodman also spoke briefly about his 1980 audition, explaining that it went up in smoke because he wasn’t very prepared. “It’s the worst thing I’ve ever done in front of people in my life. I wrote something about 15 minutes before I went over there,” he said. “Oh god, it was awful.”

While cracking a smile, he told Fallon, “It’s not that I had any material to show or anything. I just knew they’d hire me … because I’m a nice guy.”

During his appearance, Goodman also spoke about an injury he sustained while doing a stunt for the season two premiere of his HBO comedy The Righteous Gemstones. The 69-year-old actor was filming a scene that sees his character fighting in a parking lot.

“I was trying to be a stunt boy. I’m not 69-years-old. I’m 23 and I’ll do this all night if I have to. I’ll prove my worth,” Goodman joked, before getting serious. “But yeah, it was always late in the night and I was too tired to actually be doing this stuff, so I slipped in the gravel and flew headfirst into the back of a truck.”

In a recent interview with Newsweek, Goodman clarified that “the choreography was safe, everything was safe but I lost my footing.”

The actor told Fallon his head hitting the back of the truck was “the loudest thing I’ve ever heard in my life,” further describing the experience as like getting “your bell rung.”

“Went to the hospital. They give me a bunch of screens. They couldn’t tell if I’ve got a concussion or had a concussion. So I guess I’m OK,” Goodman said.

When Fallon asked whether they used the tape of him falling in the show, Goodman playfully responded to audience laughs, “They couldn’t tell if I’ve got a concussion. So I guess I’m OK.