Lorne Michaels' surprising response to 'SNL' star Bill Hader's panic attack revealed

Saturday Night Live creator Lorne Michaels has given cast members over the years some warm and some cold moments to remember: one of them being Bill Hader, who’s run on SNL fueled his anxiety.

In her book Lorne: The Man Who Invented Saturday Night Live, Susan Morrison reveals that Hader had severe anxiety and panic attacks during his time as a cast member.

“Calm the f**k down. Just have fun. Jesus Christ,” he told Hader.

The Barry star has been vocal about his anxiety and told Variety in an interview: “When I was on ‘SNL,’ I was a bit of a basket case. It could not have been easy on my wife at the time. I was so consumed with work and anxiety. Sometimes I felt like people thought, ‘Oh, he’s just wanting attention or something.’ It was like, ‘No, man, I’m legit. I’m freaking out right now.’”

Similarly, actor Andy Samberg revealed last year that he left SNL as he “was falling apart in my life” and couldn’t “endure it anymore.”

According to Morrison, actor Alec Baldwin, who has hosted SNL 17 times, says that Lorne is “Darwinian” in his management style.

“Lorne just stands back and lets them cannibalize each other.”

However, Morrison also says that Lorne is “flexible about the talent-management aspect of his producer role. Different personalities, he believes, require different approaches.”

Meanwhile, Molly Shannon says Lorne Michaels would “reassure me with his eyes,” if she felt nervous just before she went on stage.