Comedy is not pretty – especially if you’re a woman. Over in Slate, Seth Stevenson salutes Brighton native Kristen Wiig as “the undisputed star of the past few seasons of Saturday Night Live,” only to point out (bad news alert!) that this brilliant comedian keeps getting cast in movies for parts in which she’s asked to do little or nothing. 

There are worse things in life – even by Hollywood standards – than to become famous for being the best thing about a popular television show. But given that SNL has proven itself almost as concerned with launching movie careers for its stars as with making audiences laugh every weekend, it’s fair to conclude that Wiig, a hit on the small screen, deserves at least a chance to prove herself in movies. Her blink-and-you-missed-them appearances in two smart but little-seen comedies of the last year (Ghost Town and Adventureland) make me crave more Wiig. 

Certainly not everyone can “carry” their own movie – and with Hollywood budgets getting ever more bloated, it’s understandable that studios may be less likely to take gambles. But Stevenson’s invocation of Will Ferrell’s career as a beacon for Wiig to follow makes sense: Based on the bulk of his SNL output I never would have expected to be enjoying him so much in movies, but he makes it work. So, I suspect, could Kristen.

Come on Hollywood: give Wiig a chance. Supporting roles are great, but an actress this funny deserves a spotlight of her own.