SNL's 40th anniversary celebration seemed nearly perfect, didn't it? It felt like the producers thought long and hard about how to include everyone who made a real impact on the show and its viewers over the decades. Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin introduced a clip that was a tribute to Tracy Morgan's contribution to the show rather than the comedian making an appearance himself, and now we are hearing that he simply was not ready to return to television.
Morgan was in a horrific car crash last June on the New Jersey Turnpike that left his friend James McNair dead and several others critically injured. Morgan is said to still be recovering from a brain injury and it is still unclear whether or not he will ever be able to perform again.
According to a source in a report by Page Six, Morgan was asked to appear on SNL 40: "They really wanted him to be there, but when it came down to it, he just isn't mentally or emotionally ready to appear on TV yet."
Morgan was a series regular from 1996 till 2003 and certainly would have wanted to take part in the anniversary special if possible, so the fact that he declined indicates just how slow his recovery really has been. In the months following his accident, Morgan has pulled out of both film and television projects in favor of speech, cognitive, vocational and physical therapies.
Do you think Morgan will ever recover well enough to be able to take the stage again, or has this part of his career come to a permanent and abrupt halt? Did Saturday Night Live do enough to include him in its anniversary special, or do you think it should have done more? Tell us your thoughts in the comments section below.
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