Tina Fey joined the writing staff of Saturday Night Live in 1997

In 1999 Tina became the first female head writer in the show's history. The following year, she made her television debut as the co-anchor of SNL's Weekend Update. Soon after she became a regular cast member. Fey and Rachel Dratch, who also joined SNL in 1999, performed their two woman show Dratch and Fey at New York's Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in the summer of 2000 to critical acclaim.

In 2001, Fey shared a Writers Guild Award with the rest of the writers of Saturday Night Live: 25th Anniversary. They were also honored with an Emmy award in 2002 for their work on SNL.

Fey made her film debut in Martin & Orloff (2002) - an independent feature starring and written by members of Second City and The Upright Citizens Brigade. Just two years later, she not only wrote but played a role alongside Lindsey Lohan in the major motion picture Mean Girls (2004), based on the book Queen Bees and Wannabees: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends and Other Realities of Adolescence by Rosalind Wiseman.