‘Everything Has an Expiration Date’: Amy Poehler on Her ‘Inappropriate’ ‘SNL’ Moments, Including Portraying Michael Jackson and Kim Jong-il

In true Amy Poehler fashion, the comedy icon is blending honesty with humor as she looks back on her time at Saturday Night Live—including the sketches she now admits haven’t aged all that well. In a recent interview, Poehler opened up about her memorable (and occasionally eyebrow-raising) run on the legendary sketch show, reflecting on the realities of comedy, growth, and the inevitable reckoning with past laughs.

“Everything has an expiration date,” Poehler said candidly, acknowledging that some of her earlier work—like her impersonations of Michael Jackson and North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il—might raise more than a few eyebrows today. While these skits earned laughs in the 2000s, they now sit in a much different cultural context, one that Poehler herself doesn’t shy away from confronting.

She’s not out to cancel her past self, though. Poehler’s tone isn’t one of guilt—it’s of awareness. “We were working within the framework of what felt right at the time,” she explained, noting that comedy’s job is often to push boundaries. “But the framework changes. And so should we.”

Fans may remember her over-the-top portrayal of Kim Jong-il or her bizarre-yet-spot-on Michael Jackson impressions, which were crowd favorites back then. But times have changed—and so has the conversation about representation, sensitivity, and what it means to punch up rather than down.

Still, Poehler doesn’t regret her SNL years. In fact, she celebrates them. “That show made me,” she says. “It gave me the best years of my life and some of the most creatively wild moments I’ve ever had.” But she also recognizes the importance of evolving. “We’re supposed to look back and cringe a little. That means we’ve grown.”

The honesty is refreshing. While some celebs dodge or deflect questions about their past content, Poehler is meeting it head-on—with grace, wit, and the same razor-sharp insight that made her a comedic powerhouse in the first place.

As Hollywood continues to navigate the ever-evolving conversation about what’s funny, what’s fair, and what’s off-limits, Poehler’s reflections remind us that comedy isn’t immune to change—it thrives on it. And while the laughs may fade, the lessons stick.

Amy Poehler might have played controversial characters in the past, but today, she’s proving that owning up to your evolution is the classiest punchline of all.