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"A lot of people say he is cocky or full of himself. Maybe he is, but he is also the most positive person I have ever seen," Saturday Night Live's Darrell Hammond said of Donald Trump. | Getty 'SNL's' Hammond praises Trump work ethic

When it comes to Donald Trump's work as a "Saturday Night Live" host, the Republican front-runner's preeminent late-night impersonator has some words of admiration for his work ethic.

"A lot of people say he is cocky or full of himself. Maybe he is, but he is also the most positive person I have ever seen except the athletes that have come on the show," Darrell Hammond told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview published Thursday.

Referring to Trump's hosting gig last fall, Hammond said that Trump went the extra mile.

"You know, he did not believe himself to be an actor. He is not somebody from our world, so he is somebody who came earlier and stayed later," said Hammond, who returned to portraying Trump "by personal request" before the Nov. 7, 2015, show. Taran Killiam, who played Trump previously in the cycle, now plays Texas Sen. Ted Cruz exclusively.

Hammond told THR he found it "interesting because the athletes do the same thing because they know this is not their world, but something inside them tells them 'I'll figure a way to do this somehow.'"

Hammond, who also serves as the show's announcer, has previously portrayed former President Bill Clinton and former Vice President Al Gore as a cast member on "SNL," but he remarked that playing Trump requires a bit more nuance.

"When he does that thing with his mouth, that oval thing with his mouth, it's actually on certain vowels. It's almost like a watch repair, it is so minute," he said. "And then you see what we call home base. Home base is the head [tilted] back, the lips closed, then eyes closed or narrow, looking around like 'This is awesome. Things are great. I am great. I can do this.'"