Keeley Jones is an iconic Ted Lasso character, and her journey to becoming a beloved businesswoman has been wonderful to watch. Now, she’s helping spearhead AFC Richmond’s women’s team, and she really is in full boss mode in the season of the comedy airing on the 2026 TV schedule. With all that said, I was shocked to learn that Jason Sudeikis’ experience on Saturday Night Live actually helped inspire Keeley’s arc. Now, Keeley is partially inspired by former pinup Keeley Hazell (who played Bex in Ted Lasso). But Saturday Night Live and Sudeikis’ early years in comedy informed Juno Temple’s character, too. This came up during an interview the actor who plays Ted Lasso did in 2021 with Jeremy Egner (via his book Believe). Here’s what he had to say: When you get the opportunity to work at a place like Saturday Night Live, people on the business side of things are champing at the bit to work with you because, lo and behold, you might turn into the next Mike Myers or Adam Sandler or Tina Fey.In the first three seasons of Ted Lasso, which you can stream with an Apple TV subscription, we do see Keeley rise from a socialite to a powerful PR professional who helps AFC Richmond thrive. She has to break out of a box she’d been in for a long time to do that, though, and that was inspired by SNL, as Sudeikis explained: So they also put you in a box and you can sometimes allow yourself to stay in that box, that box being, 'Oh they're a comedian, they can do comedy.' And yet you look at Tina's work and Mike Meyer's work, and Adam Sandler – those exact same people work – and know that they're more than that. And so the Keeley character, while inspired by a friend of mine, is also as much about my journey of realizing, Oh, I might have more to give than just jokes. And more importantly, I might want to. I totally see what he’s saying. Keeley was so good at the work she did before Richmond. However, she quickly realized she had more range and wanted to pursue other paths, while also not totally abandoning the thing that made her successful in the first place. That trajectory matches all the mega SNL stars Sudeikis mentioned, and it’s true for him too. Take Adam Sandler, who has made his fair share of comedies and dramas over the years, for example. He’s still making funny movies, like Happy Gilmore 2 and Grown Ups 3 with his pals. However, he is also acclaimed for his work in more dramatic films, like Uncut Gems, Hustle and Jay Kelly. On top of that, he’s an accomplished writer and producer. Tina Fey is also an accomplished writer, producer and performer, and so are Mike Myers and Jason Sudeikis. They’re all versatile, and in the years since they were on SNL, they’ve helped spearhead major projects both behind the scenes and in front of the camera. To use the Horrible Bosses star’s words, they have “more to give than just jokes.” In the case of Jason Sudeikis specifically, Saturday Night Live helped him launch a very successful career as a comedic performer. Then, after leaving SNL in 2013 and working in movies and TV for a few years, he co-created Ted Lasso, which highlights his range as a comedic and dramatic performer while also showcasing his skill as a producer and writer. And Keeley has more to give than being an on-camera talent, which she’s proven across Ted Lasso’s run. Now, to see how she continues to help get AFC Richmond’s women’s team off the ground, you can catch new episodes of the Apple TV comedy every Wednesday.