Dane Cook Regrets Skipping His ‘SNL’ Audition After Having Panic Attack: “I Blew It”

Nearly 30 years later, Dane Cook still laments blowing his shot at sketch comedy greatness.

The comedian admitted he “definitely felt like I let myself down” as he recently reflected on skipping his audition for Saturday Night Live early in his career after experiencing a panic attack outside the building.

“On my way to my audition at SNL, I had a full-on panic attack,” said Cook on the Fly on the Wall podcast. “I sat on a bench outside of Rockefeller Plaza. And I didn’t go in. I actually called my manager. I said … ‘I can’t do it.’ And he’s like, ‘Why? They’re all waiting for you. They wanna see you. They’re looking for something to fill that void.’”

He said he was scouted during some of his stand-up shows shortly after Adam Sandler left the NBC sketch comedy show in 1995. “And I blew it on the day,” Cook recalled.

“I also knew from a few friends that had been on the show that it was that it was more confrontational, and I was very beta at that time,” he added. “And I was like, I’m not gonna be able to fight for skits. I can barely, you know, get my food order out … for a waiter at lunch. I’m not gonna be able to survive at SNL.”

Although Cook never made it onto the cast of SNL, he hosted the show twice, in 2005 and 2006.

Following his debut comedy album Harmful If Swallowed in 2003, Cook became known for roles in several comedies, including Waiting… (2005), Employee of the Month (2006), Good Luck Chuck (2007) and My Best Friend’s Girl (2008).