Saturday Night Live cast member Sarah Sherman said how gender and body-horror inform her comedic style during a Newsmakers Impact interview.

Sherman's perspective highlights the intersection of physical comedy and political identity, illustrating how women navigate expectations of taste and propriety in the entertainment industry.

During the interview, Sherman said the body-horror aspect of being a woman and how her specific brand of crude humor is inherently political [1, 3]. She has become known for utilizing prosthetics to create unsettling characters that challenge traditional beauty standards and social norms [2].

"I think some people have been very shocked of what monstrosity I’m capable of," Sherman said [1].

Her work at Studio 8H often involves transforming into figures that push the limits of taste [2]. This approach to comedy serves as a commentary on the female experience, using the grotesque to reclaim power over the physical form [1, 3].

Sherman has appeared on five seasons of SNL [4]. Beyond her tenure on the sketch show, she has expanded her exploration of these themes through an HBO special [1, 3].

Throughout the conversation, Sherman said that the act of being "crude" as a woman carries a different weight than when performed by men. By leaning into the monstrous, she challenges the restrictive roles typically assigned to women in comedy [1, 3].

“"I think some people have been very shocked of what monstrosity I’m capable of."”

Sherman's approach represents a shift in women's comedy toward the 'grotesque,' moving away from observational humor about domesticity toward a more visceral, physical critique of gender roles. By centering body-horror, she uses the physical form as a site of political rebellion against societal expectations of female poise.