Bill Murray reveals Bruce Willis worked at SNL before landing his acting break

The Die Hard star, Bruce Willis, appeared as a new kind of action hero in the 80s—one who would not only fight the bad guys but also had a certain charm and the capability of delivering impressive one-liners. Having said that, veteran actor Bill Murray recently revealed something surprising and interesting about Bruce Willis that most people had no idea about.

The legendary actor and Ghostbusters star appeared on a recent episode of Watch What Happens Live and spoke with host Andy Cohen about Bruce Willis, who happens to be his longtime friend. Murray revealed that before landing his first on-screen break, Willis worked behind the scenes on the 50-year-old, super-popular sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live.

74-year-old Murray, who was accompanied by his co-star Naomi Watts on WWHL while promoting their new movie The Friend (released on March 28, 2025), eventually discussed in detail what exactly Bruce Willis' job was while working behind the scenes at SNL. Murray explained:

"Bruce Willis was a page at NBC when I was on Saturday Night Live. This sounds like insane sh*t, but his job was to come and go to the dressing rooms and refill the M&Ms and pretzels kind of thing in the actors’ rooms."

The Groundhog Day actor, who hosted SNL five times, made his debut on the show as a cast member in 1977. Bruce Willis, who once worked behind the scenes, later cemented his name as one of the biggest Hollywood stars and went on to host the popular sketch comedy show not once, but twice—first in 1989 and then again in 2013.

Most of Willis' fans believe that it was Die Hard that made him famous, but in reality, it was the mystery comedy-drama TV series Moonlighting, created by Glenn Gordon Caron, that catapulted him to stardom. Since becoming a Hollywood hotshot, Willis and Murray have starred in films like Wes Anderson's critically acclaimed Moonrise Kingdom and Barry Levinson's Rock the Kasbah.

However, Murray continued talking about Willis and said:

"I remember when I met him after he was already a successful guy, he said you and Gilda (Radner) were nice to me. I always thought 'Okay, I'm good with this guy.' He was a good guy."

Murray then praised the Armageddon star, Willis, by saying:

"I got to work with and have a wonderful time with (him). Bruce Willis is a good guy, a good f*cking guy. He was a good friend."

Where is Bruce Willis these days?

The Pulp Fiction actor, Bruce Willis, known for his on-screen charm and smooth one-liners, retired from the movie business after being diagnosed with aphasia in 2022. In 2023, his condition progressed into frontotemporal dementia (FTD).

With a 40-year-long acting career, Willis has worked with several successful directors, including M. Night Shyamalan, Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez, and John McTiernan. Not to mention, he is the recipient of prestigious awards like the Golden Globe Award, People's Choice Award, and Primetime Emmy Award.