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    Kate McKinnon Returns to ‘S.N.L.’ as Dr. Anthony Fauci

    McKinnon wasted no time playing numerous roles in a “Saturday Night Live” episode in which Billie Eilish was both host and musical guest.For the first seven episodes of its current season, “Saturday Night Live” was without the services of Kate McKinnon while she worked on other projects. This had temporarily deprived the show of one of its most prolific impressionists, and though other cast members helped to fill the void, “S.N.L.” wasted no time in putting McKinnon back to work upon her return.This weekend’s episode, for which the pop star Billie Eilish was both the host and the musical guest, began with McKinnon returning to the role of Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, in a speech where she addressed concerns about the rise of the Omicron coronavirus variant.But first, McKinnon asked, “Do people still think I’m sexy or are we done with that? When people see me on TV, they think, this can’t be good. And their children think, wow, that Elf on the Shelf got old.”She then introduced a series of short scenes meant to dramatize real-life scenarios that people might find themselves in this holiday season.In the first, Mikey Day played a prospective customer at a restaurant who had lost his vaccination card. “Then you are banished from society,” its hostess, Heidi Gardner, told him. “Have fun living in the woods.” (As Fauci, McKinnon helpfully commented on their interaction, “You can get a replacement card. I think.”)In other scenes, Bowen Yang and Ego Nwodim played an airline passenger and a flight attendant, and Kyle Mooney and Melissa Villaseñor played a mall Santa Claus and a child hoping to sit on his lap.Another scene that McKinnon said was about “two unemployed brothers on Christmas Day” turned out to depict ex-New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo (Pete Davidson) and the recently fired CNN host Chris Cuomo (Andrew Dismukes).“We both lost our jobs,” Davidson said, pausing to add, “because of Covid.”Cecily Strong and Chloe Fineman appeared as Representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert, both wielding assault rifles, and Aidy Bryant played Senator Ted Cruz, describing herself as “the weirdo with a beard-o.”At the sketch’s conclusion, McKinnon tried to find some common ground. “Clearly this country is divided,” she said. “But I think we all agree on at least a few things. We all want to spend time together with our families.”Bryant interjected, “Or run it back solo to Cancun.”Davidson observed, “Family is all we have.”“Yeah,” added Dismukes. “As of two weeks ago.”Dose of the Holiday Spirit of the WeekIf the various decorations and poinsettias around Studio 8H didn’t already remind you that this was a Yuletide episode of “S.N.L.,” the holiday mood was quickly established by this sketch in which Villaseñor and Alex Moffat played a couple watching the Christmas cards on their refrigerator come to life.The well-wishers included Fineman and Day as the parents in a particularly fertile Christian family; Yang and Kenan Thompson as a middle-aged gay couple with a long-lived dog; and Punkie Johnson, who strong-armed Miley Cyrus (playing herself) into posing with her for a photo.Social Media Parody of the WeekWhat’s the shortest duration of time in which an “S.N.L.” character can exist? A sketch? A Weekend Update deskside bit? How about just one joke?It’s a mathematical riddle that gets put to the test in this segment that sends up the viral video site TikTok and features a seemingly endless stream of single-serving characters. Watch for Fineman as a conspiracy theorist obsessed with Blake Lively’s attire; Eilish as a dancing nurse oblivious to her own patients; Aristotle Athari as a stand-up comic who doesn’t handle heckling very well; James Austin Johnson (we think?) as something called Homer Simpson A.S.M.R.; and possibly 20 or 30 other bits we may have missed.Weekend Update Jokes of the WeekOver at the Weekend Update desk, the anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che riffed on headlines from the week, including the guilty verdict in the Jussie Smollett trial and criticism of Vice President Kamala Harris.Jost began:On Thursday, a Chicago jury declared Jussie Smollett really bad at acting. Smollett was found guilty of charges related to staging a hate crime. It’s the worst staged hate crime since my all-Christian production of “Fiddler on the Roof.” And in legal news where someone definitely won’t get convicted, Donald Trump is being investigated for fraud by New York’s attorney general, who wants to depose Trump under oath on Jan 7. But come on, Jan. 7? That’s the day after his big anniversary. [A picture of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot is shown onscreen.]Che continued:According to a new report, a former staff member for Vice President Kamala Harris says that she often fails to read briefing material and is unprepared for meetings. It feels really amazing to finally see someone in the White House who’s just like me. After the tree outside Fox News headquarters was sent on fire by a homeless man, “Fox & Friends” host Ainsley Earhardt said, “This Scrooge is not going to get away with it.” And nothing has ever explained Fox News better than a rich white lady calling a homeless man Scrooge.Five Minutes ’Til Closing Credits Sketch of the WeekYour reward for making it to the end of the show was this loopy segment featuring McKinnon and Eilish in a promotional video for an utterly generic — and yet thoroughly objectionable — hotel chain called the Inn & Suites & Hotel Room Inn.Eilish’s brother, Finneas, turns up as a chaotic valet (who performs a few extra duties on the side) and Eilish declares in her best deadpan, “See why Trip Advisor called us a stock photo you can sleep in,” as she and McKinnon try and fail to prevent themselves from cracking up. More

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    A Kennedy Center Honors With the Presidential Box Used as Intended

    Former President Donald J. Trump did not attend the tribute, but President Biden was on hand as Bette Midler, Joni Mitchell, Berry Gordy, Justino Díaz and Lorne Michaels were honored.WASHINGTON — The orchestra cycled through an early homage to the latest class of honorees: an excerpt from the opera “Carmen,” a tribute to the sounds of Motown, the chorus of “Wind Beneath My Wings.”But the 44th Kennedy Center Honors did not begin in earnest on Sunday night until President Biden and Dr. Jill Biden, the first lady, arrived to their seats in the presidential box in the opera house, and were introduced to a standing ovation from a crowd of thousands wearing masks and black tie.Mr. Biden’s presence — the first time a president has attended the event since 2016 — heralded the restoration of tradition for the Honors, a star-studded event that recognizes lifetime achievements in the arts, including music, dance, theater, film and comedy, and helps raise money for the arts complex. The event had been rattled in recent years by former President Donald Trump’s decision to skip the festivities altogether after some recipients had announced in 2017 that they would not attend a gala event at the White House. Then in 2020 it was derailed, or at least delayed, by the coronavirus pandemic.“It is quite nice — very nice — to see the presidential box once again being occupied,” David Letterman, the comedian, declared in opening remarks, prompting a standing ovation from the crowd as Mr. Biden and Dr. Jill Biden waved. They were joined by Vice President Kamala Harris and Douglas Emhoff, the Second Gentleman.Just six months after an abbreviated celebration of the 2020 nominees, there were glimmers of both political and artistic normalcy. The show returned to its annual December slot, providing nearly four hours of tribute performances and speeches to more than 2,000 guests, who packed the opera house in shimmering gowns and tuxedos.President Biden spoke at a reception for the honorees at the White House. This year’s honorees were Justino Díaz, Lorne Michaels, Bette Midler, Berry Gordy and Joni Mitchell.Stefani Reynolds for The New York TimesAnd in addition to attending the event, Mr. Biden revived the practice of hosting a White House reception for the five honorees: Bette Midler, the screen and stage actress; Joni Mitchell, the singer-songwriter; Berry Gordy, the founder of Motown; the opera singer Justino Díaz; and Lorne Michaels, the creator of “Saturday Night Live.”“For this pandemic of profound loss and pain, as we move forward toward repair and renewal, the artist vision is important as it ever has been — I would argue more important,” Mr. Biden told the honorees in the East Room. “We’ve seen the power of art in every form to heal, to comfort, and recover.”He lavished praise on the honorees, calling Ms. Midler “a performer without peer,” and praising Mr. Díaz for bestowing “the sound of soul” on audiences. He thanked Mr. Gordy for helping to create “music that lifted us higher” and told Ms. Mitchell, “You sing poetry, it seems to me.”And he called Mr. Michaels “Mr. Wise Guy,” joking about the number of actors tapped to play the president on “S.N.L.” over the years, and noting, “If you can’t laugh at yourself, we’re in real trouble —- and you make me laugh at myself a lot.”Echoes of the pandemic still reverberated. Attendees had to repeatedly show proof of vaccination, an existing policy for all performances at the Kennedy Center. Masks — an array of medical, satin and sequined — were required, but removed for photos, performances and food.The medallion ceremony on Saturday evening, a traditionally more intimate dinner where the honorees receive the rainbow-ribboned awards, was held at the Library of Congress in order to host just over 200 people and accommodate coronavirus protocols.Seated at library desks with the lamps on, the honorees were feted under the gaze of statues of Shakespeare and Plato, after guests perused exhibits dedicated to their work. As he received his medallion, Mr. Díaz, allured by the acoustics, burst into an excerpt from “Otello,” his deep voice reverberating throughout the room.Ms. Mitchell, who spoke briefly with reporters after receiving her medallion, said that “there was a lot of heart to the whole thing.”The Honors event is a key fund-raiser for the Kennedy Center, which is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its opening in 1971. The event raised nearly $6.5 million, a spokeswoman said, with the cost of tickets to the Sunday gala ranging between $600 and $10,000.But for the honorees and the menagerie of lawmakers, donors, artists, colleagues and family members arriving to pay tribute, it was a celebration of not just their legacy, but of the return of their communities and live performances after the pandemic devastated arts industries around the world.“It’s very special and it’s a different perspective — I get to enjoy, not suffer with nerves,” said Mr. Díaz, who performed during the Kennedy Center’s inaugural year in Ginastera’s “Beatrix Cenci” (and who sang in the first performance at the new Metropolitan Opera House in Lincoln Center in 1966).“It’s like coming home again, except a different part of the house.”Members of the cast of “Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations,” the Broadway musical, sang a cappella on the red carpet in between interviews, before performing in character onstage as part of a tribute to Mr. Gordy. For Pete Buttigieg, the Transportation secretary, and his husband, Chasten, the evening was their first date night since their twins were born. And Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California and a host of bipartisan lawmakers could be seen applauding and dancing in their seats before the end of the night.“I think I’m in a dream,” Mr. Gordy proclaimed. “And it’s a wonderful dream.”To honor Ms. Mitchell, the ceremony included Brandi Carlile, a friend and collaborator, performing “River,” Ellie Goulding singing “Big Yellow Taxi,” and Norah Jones performing both “The Circle Game” and “A Case of You.”Mr. Díaz grew emotional as his daughters, Natascia Díaz and Katya Díaz, sang “En Mi Viejo San Juan,” before excerpts from “Carmen” and “Faust” were performed. Ms. Midler cheered as a trio of her “Hello, Dolly!” castmates performed “Friends,” before Billy Porter, the actor and singer, emerged from a clam shell to lead a medley of her songs.A parade of comedic veterans from S.N.L. alternated between gently ribbing Mr. Michaels, their former — or current —  boss, and thanking him for his influence on their careers. It was punctuated by a trio of mock “Weekend Update” segments hosted by Kevin Nealon, Seth Meyers and Amy Poehler, and Colin Jost and Michael Che. Paul Simon concluded the tribute to Mr. Michaels with a performance of “America.”During the tribute to Mr. Gordy, the show paused to restart after an apparent technical mishap. But when the set parted to reveal Stevie Wonder at the piano, breaking into a medley that included “My Cherie Amour,” “You Are the Sunshine of My Life,” and “Superstition,” the crowd erupted into raucous applause.By the finale, “Higher Ground,” the audience was on its feet.“To be part of this sort of lineage and this long line of people who have contributed so much to the culture, it’s just staggering to me,” Ms. Midler said. “I am so thrilled.”The Kennedy Center Honors will be broadcast on CBS on Dec. 22. More

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    ‘Saturday Night Live’ Weighs In on the Kyle Rittenhouse Verdict

    This weekend’s broadcast, hosted by Simu Liu, also included some helpful Thanksgiving tips and, uh, Dog Head Man.About a half-hour into this weekend’s broadcast, “Saturday Night Live” would devote an entire sketch to a character with a dog’s head and neck attached to a human body. But first, the show addressed the acquittal of Kyle Rittenhouse.In its opening segment, “S.N.L.” returned to the familiar format of a “Justice with Judge Jeanine” parody, with Cecily Strong playing the program’s vociferous host, Jeanine Pirro.Reflecting on the highly charged Rittenhouse proceedings, Strong said, “That lovable scamp was put through a nightmare of a trial just for doing the bravest thing any American can do: protecting an empty used car lot in someone else’s town.”She then introduced Mikey Day as Judge Bruce Schroeder, who oversaw the trial, saying that he had been “as impartial as a dance mom clapping harder than anyone.”Day said that the rules he followed during the trial were “all standard procedure.”“That’s why I ordered that the prosecution not use the word ‘victims,’” he said. “They were rioters. And they weren’t shot. They were ‘gadoinked.’ But that did not give my client an unfair advantage in any way.”Strong asked him, “Do you mean the defendant?”“Oh yeah, sure, I keep doing that,” Day replied.Strong brought out two liberal commentators, played by Chloe Fineman and Chris Redd, who saw the verdict from very different perspectives.“I was shocked,” Fineman said. (“You were?” Redd responded. “‘Cause I wasn’t.”)“I’ve never seen anything like it before,” she said. (“I have,” he answered. “Many, many times.”)“This is not who we are,” Fineman declared. (“I feel like it kind of is,” Redd answered.)The sketch also featured Alex Moffat as Representative Kevin McCarthy, the House minority leader, in a brief sendup of the eight-hour speech he gave from Thursday night into Friday morning. Strong said of him, “And that brave man stopped the Build Back Better bill from being passed. Until the next day, when it passed in two minutes.”As in its previous iteration, the segment concluded with an appearance from James Austin Johnson as former President Donald J. Trump. He delivered a couple of free-association riffs on Chris Christie, Bill Maher, Dua Lipa and “Gossip Girl,” and boasted that he had “built it back even better.”“I did wall,” Johnson said. “Big, beautiful wall. But it’s not just wall, because when you put wall down through a grass field, frankly, that’s road. And if you take wall and lay it across the river, frankly, Jeanine, you are doing bridge.”Game Show Parody of the WeekWhat constitutes a Republican or Democratic viewpoint anymore? Efforts to answer that question may prove elusive but they at least provide “S.N.L.” with the foundations of this satirical game show titled “Republican or Not.”Hosted by Kenan Thompson, the show asks contestants played by Liu and Ego Nwodim to answer that question about panelists including Kyle Mooney, who says he hates cops and thinks Facebook is evil; Sarah Sherman, who says her favorite comic is Dave Chappelle; and Strong, who is playing Representative Liz Cheney of Wyoming. (“You are the Rachel Dolezal of the Republican Party,” Thompson told her. “We will see you on MSNBC in about a week.”)Fake Commercial of the WeekIf you’re short on supplies for an upcoming Thanksgiving feast in your household, Target has you covered: not just turkeys, sides and sauces but (in this “S.N.L.” commercial parody) the highly specific items you’ll need to placate the more challenging members of your family.That includes a football for your uncle who takes the outdoor pigskin game too seriously; motion sensors so your dirtbag cousin can smoke in the driveway; and toys for kids left unsupervised. However briefly, this sketch also provides Liu with one of his better roles for the night: an annoying boyfriend who will only eat Tofurkey because, as he explains, “I won’t eat anything with feathers anymore.” (Needless to say, he’s also extremely enthusiastic about crypto.)Music Video of the WeekPete Davidson has been famous for a while now but, as you may have noticed recently, he’s gotten really famous. This apparently affords him the clout to create oddities like this segment, a parody of the video for Marc Cohn’s 1991 hit single “Walking in Memphis,” reframed so that it’s about Davidson’s home borough of Staten Island.Instead of the Sun Records studio and a statue of Elvis Presley, Davidson’s take features appearances from Method Man and the real-life Cohn, as well as bagel stores, pizzerias and a strip club that possibly used to be a McDonald’s.Weekend Update Jokes of the WeekOver at the Weekend Update desk, the anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che continued to riff on the Rittenhouse trial as well as other political developments from the past weekJost began:Yesterday was a weird one for President Biden. He went under anesthesia for a colonoscopy and when he woke up, the House had passed a $2 trillion social safety-net bill. The Rittenhouse verdict was announced. And a woman had technically been president for the first time ever. And while Biden was processing all that, he was rushed off to pardon a turkey named Peanut Butter. I mean, come on, the guy just turned 79. Half the country already thinks he’s senile. You can’t drop all that on him the second he comes out of the gas. I honestly can’t believe how well it went. Remember David after the dentist? I’m surprised we didn’t get Biden after the colonoscopy.Che continued:On Friday, Kyle Rittenhouse was found not guilty in the murder of two men during a Black Lives Matter protest. So hopefully he got all that shooting out of his system before he becomes a cop. Protests are being held all around the country in response to the acquittal of Kyle Rittenhouse. Which is brave because Kyle Rittenhouse just got off for shooting protesters. I don’t know, maybe don’t tempt him?The Sketch About a Man’s Body With the Head and Neck of a DogHere it is, Dog Head Man. Have a happy Thanksgiving. More

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    'S.N.L.': Taylor Swift Performs and Jonathan Majors Hosts

    The sketch show, hosted this weekend by Jonathan Majors, also featured a 10-minute performance from the musical guest Taylor Swift.Back in 2012, when the then-Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney professed his affection for Big Bird but nonetheless vowed to cut funding for PBS, “Saturday Night Live” brought in Big Bird himself to explain that he wasn’t a political creature and didn’t “want to ruffle any feathers.”Almost a decade later, after the fictional, good-natured Big Bird said in a tweet that he had received a Covid vaccine, he has drawn the ire of Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, who complained that the tweet was “government propaganda for your 5-year-old.”This time around, “S.N.L.” didn’t get the support of any actual Muppets, so the show created its own alternate version of “Sesame Street,” which it called “Cruz Street.”Aidy Bryant, who played Senator Cruz in the opening sketch, stood in front of what looked like a familiar brownstone and explained, “For 50 years I stood by as ‘Sesame Street’ taught our children dangerous ideas, like numbers and kindness.”She continued: “But when Big Bird told children to get vaccinated against a deadly disease, I said enough. And I created my own ‘Sesame Street,’ called ‘Cruz Street.’ It’s a gated community, where kids are safe from the woke government.”Following the show’s theme song, Bryant was joined by Cecily Strong as Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, toting what she said was an AR-15.Strong said she was “just taking a break from releasing the phone numbers of Republicans who voted for the infrastructure bill so they and their families get death threats, and I thought I’d stop by.”Bryant’s Cruz was also visited by Kyle Mooney, dressed in a makeshift Big Bird costume that probably wasn’t fabricated by Sesame Workshop. He said that in the week since he had gotten the vaccine, his feathers had fallen out (among other physical side effects he claimed to be experiencing).To help out Mooney, Bryant brought out Pete Davidson, who played the comedian and podcast host Joe Rogan. He offered his own unreliable remedies, which consisted of “zinc and ayahuasca and some horse medicine.”Other cast members played alternate versions of “Sesame Street” characters, including Alex Moffat and Mikey Day as Bert and Ernie; Chris Redd as a furry green creature called Oscar the Slouch (“Papa Joe Biden gave me so many stimmies, I decided to quit working and live in this trash can”); and Aristotle Athari as the Recount Count.And hey, for good measure, the sketch brought out Chloe Fineman as Britney Spears, newly released from her yearslong conservatorship. “Oh my God, you guys, we did it,” she said.Fake ad of the weekSpare a thought for all the men who discovered during the pandemic that they didn’t know how to form adult friendships and are now bereft of peer groups.For their support — and for the benefit of their spouses and significant others — “S.N.L.” has given us the Man Park, a dog park-like place where these well-meaning recluses can come together and share useless trivia, argue about “Rick and Morty” or communicate with one another simply by saying “Marvel” over and over.We’re not saying we’re the target audience for this particular service, but when Andrew Dismukes asked “Who’s the GOAT, Michael Jordan or Tom Brady?” and Athari answered “How about Bo Burnham?” it felt so real.Musical performance of the weekTaylor Swift got only one song on the show, but boy did she make it count: She delivered a blistering, 10-minute rendition of “All Too Well” from her newly released album of re-recordings, “Red (Taylor’s Version).”Her performance — which ran even longer than Prince’s fabled eight-minute, three-song medley from an “S.N.L.” appearance in 2014 — was accompanied by a short film that Swift directed, starring herself and the actors Sadie Sink and Dylan O’Brien. The re-emergence of “All Too Well” (a shorter version of which was originally released in 2012) has also resurfaced speculation on who the song might be about — speculation that the film seems to be reinforcing? — and we recommend that you give the song a full listen if you want to at least understand the leadoff joke on Weekend Update.Weekend Update jokes of the weekOver at the Weekend Update desk, the anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che riffed on the indictment of Stephen Bannon, the Kyle Rittenhouse trial and, yes, Taylor Swift.Jost began:Well, guys, I think the lesson we all learned this week is, never break up with Taylor Swift. Or she will sing about you for 10 minutes on national television. At the very least, return the scarf.He continued:But in real news — I don’t really know what’s real anymore — ex-Trump adviser Steve Bannon, seen here moments after shooting out of a sewage pipe — sorry, I should use his full name, Stephen K. Bannon; the K stands for three Ks — was indicted this week for contempt of Congress. If convicted, Bannon would face up to two years in prison. Which from the looks of him, might be a life sentence.Che pivoted to Rittenhouse:Legal experts are saying that Kyle Rittenhouse crying on the stand as he described how he shot his victims will help him with the jury. Man, is there a White Tears Law School that I don’t know about? I notice that every time y’all get in trouble, you start crying, and everything just works out for you, whether you’re trying to beat a murder charge or trying to be a Supreme Court justice. [His screen displays a picture of Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh.] More

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    ‘Saturday Night Live’ Introduces a New Donald Trump

    James Austin Johnson took on the role of Trump in an episode that also featured appearances by Dionne Warwick and Tracy Morgan. Kieran Culkin of “Succession” was the host.The last time Cecily Strong played the Fox News host Jeanine Pirro on “Saturday Night Live,” it seemed like she might be saying goodbye to her longtime TV home. (She did, after all, end the segment by singing “My Way” and dousing herself in a giant box of wine.)But to the benefit of the show, Strong did not leave “S.N.L.,” and she was back tonight playing Pirro in the show’s cold open. She’d get a more memorable moment in the spotlight later in the night — for now, the segment belonged to a rookie cast member, James Austin Johnson, who has rapidly become one of “S.N.L.”’s most versatile celebrity impressionists and brought his capable sendup of former president Donald J. Trump to the program for the first time.Strong began by interviewing a guest she introduced as “an American brave enough to stand up and say, screw you science — I know Joe Rogan.” That turned out to be Pete Davidson playing the Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who tested positive for the coronavirus earlier this week and confirmed, in a combative interview on Friday, that he was not vaccinated.Davidson, as Rodgers, defended his ambiguous remarks about his vaccination status. “I never lied,” he said. “I took all my teammates into a huddle, got all their faces three inches away from my wet mouth, and told them trust me, I’m more or less immunized. Go team!”He added, “At the end of the day, my record is still 7-1. Meaning, of the eight people I’ve infected, seven are fine.”Strong also interviewed Alex Moffat, playing Glenn Youngkin, the Republican governor-elect of Virginia. When she asked him to provide a definition of critical race theory, Moffat answered, “It’s simple: It’s what got me elected.” Pressed for more clarity, Moffat added, “It’s not important. What’s important is parents.”He introduced Heidi Gardner as a member of his parental task force on education, and she cited some of the books she wanted removed from the state’s curriculum, including “Pride and Prejudice” (“Prejudice is fine, but pride is a term that has been co-opted by the gays,” Gardner said) and “The Great Gatsby” (“Too much jazz”).Strong brought out her surprise final guest: Trump, as played by Johnson (who is already holding down the recurring role of President Biden on “S.N.L.”).“I just wanted to congratulate Glenn Youngkin and mostly myself on a tremendous victory in Virginia,” Johnson said. “You know what Glenn? We did it together.”Moffat uncomfortably replied, “You don’t have to say that.”Johnson went on to deliver a discursive monologue, complete with a “Pardon the Interruption”-style topic list and countdown clock, in which he rambled on about “Star Wars” (He claimed to have told George Lucas, “You need to do it with swords — the lasers are not enough”), “Dune,” Timothée Chalamet, Jason Momoa, “Game of Thrones” and, finally, the state of Virginia.An impressed Strong asked him, “How do you keep that all in your brain?”Johnson answered, “I had my ears sealed so nothing comes in or out.”Opening Monologue of the WeekKieran Culkin, who plays the sarcastic media scion Roman Roy on HBO’s “Succession,” naturally used his opening monologue to crack some jokes about his role on that hit series. Roman, he said, is “one of the nicer characters on the show — which still makes him one of the Top 10 worst humans on TV.”Culkin also reminded viewers that he had previously appeared on “S.N.L.” some 30 years ago when his brother Macaulay had hosted the program, and that 9-year-old Kieran had been hoisted aloft by grown-up cast members during the show’s good nights. Did a 39-year-old Kieran repeat the tradition at the end of this weekend’s broadcast? You’ll just have to watch and see. (OK, fine, he did repeat it.)Surprise Celebrity Cameo of the WeekThis is why you watch an “S.N.L.” sketch all the way to the end. It seemed, at first, like a typical outing of “The Dionne Warwick Talk Show,” a recurring segment in which Ego Nwodim plays a delightfully kooky version of that enduring pop singer. And as usual, she was joined by guests that she doesn’t recognize or particularly care about, including Chloe Fineman as Miley Cyrus, Culkin as Jason Mraz and Ed Sheeran as Ed Sheeran.But just as the sketch seemed to be winding down, Nwodim said, “I’m sick and tired of interviewing people who are not icons. Please welcome: me.” And out strode the real-life Warwick, who sat down in a chair opposite her. Nwodim asked the singer, “Dionne, why are you perfect?” Warwick replied, “My darling, I am not perfect. I’m just very, very good.” Their brief duet of “What the World Needs Now” that followed was almost too generous but we’ll take it anyway.Weekend Update Jokes of the WeekOver at the Weekend Update desk, the anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che riffed on the passage of President Biden’s infrastructure plan in the House of Representatives, and the results of Tuesday’s elections.Jost began:Our top story tonight, like it’s been for as long as I can remember: infrastructure. Last night, the House passed President Biden’s $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill, which should be enough to clean as many as two of LaGuardia’s bathrooms. The infrastructure bill will also expand internet access across the U.S., which is great news, because when has more internet ever been bad for America? [His screen displays a photo of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.]Che continued:Democrat Terry McAuliffe lost to Republican Glenn Youngkin in the Virginia governor’s race. But on the bright side, losers from Virginia usually get a statue. [His screen displays a photo of a monument to Robert E. Lee.] Political experts say that the Republican victory in Virginia’s governor’s race was fueled by white women who didn’t go to college. Which just so happens to be the same exact group I target on Tinder.Weekend Update Character of the WeekHere, as promised, was Cecily Strong’s true standout moment from the episode.At the Weekend Update desk, Jost began with a prelude about the recent Supreme Court arguments on a restrictive Texas law that bans most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. He then introduced Strong as a character called Goober the Clown Who Had an Abortion When She Was 23.While she sprayed Jost with water from a trick boutonniere and tried to make balloon animals, Strong talked about how common it is for clowns to have abortions and how they feel more comfortable discussing the subject with one another when they learn that other clowns have had them. It was not the easiest subject to mine for comedy. But as Strong explained, describing a doctor who jokingly asked if she had gotten pregnant on her way over to the clinic, “It’s not like a funny ha-ha joke, but like a funny, you’re not an awful person and your life isn’t over now joke. The best kind.” More

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    ‘Saturday Night Live’ Takes on the N.F.L.’s Jon Gruden Scandal

    An episode hosted by Rami Malek also featured appearances from his “No Time to Die” co-star Daniel Craig.You know an N.F.L. scandal has wide-reaching implications when it makes it as far as a “Saturday Night Live” opening sketch.This week, in an episode hosted by Rami Malek and featuring the musical guest Young Thug, “S.N.L.” led off with a segment about Jon Gruden, the former coach of the Las Vegas Raiders, who stepped down on Monday. A New York Times report had detailed emails from Gruden that contained misogynist and homophobic remarks, following the disclosure of another email from him in which he used a racist stereotype to describe a Black union leader.The “S.N.L.” sketch made use of several members of the show’s cast — even Colin Jost, who’s rarely seen away from the Weekend Update desk, and who played the N.F.L. commissioner Roger Goodell.Speaking as Goodell, Jost said, “When you see me on TV, it’s never good. This time, one of our coaches is accused of racism, misogyny and homophobia. But hey, at least no one’s talking about concussions.”Jost added, “I assure you all 32 teams in our league understand that diversity is our strength. And I know our Black coaches would agree. Both of them.”He then introduced Gruden, who he said “got on his knees and begged, and you know how much I hate seeing someone kneel.”James Austin Johnson, a new cast member who is rapidly adding to his roster of impersonations, played Gruden with some prominent cheek prosthetics. “I hope you won’t judge me on one email I sent 10 years ago,” he said. “Or the 20 emails I sent last Tuesday.”Alex Moffat, wearing a closely cropped wig, played the Raiders owner Mark Davis. “We need to do better,” he said. “We need to, as I always tell my barber, aim higher.”The lineup also featured Pete Davidson as the team’s new coach. “It is an honor to take over this storied franchise and a real shame that I have to immediately resign,” he said. “They just found my emails, too, and they are so much worse than the old coach’s.”He was followed by Andrew Dismukes, playing an equipment manager, who just learned he’d been made coach and must now also resign because of his old tweets. “I never should have dressed up as Jackie Chan for Halloween,” he explained. “But 2019 was a different era.”Chris Redd as appeared as the former N.F.L. quarterback Colin Kaepernick. “So much stuff coming out about the NFL is maybe racist, kinda,” he said with a dramatic pause. “Huh. I wonder if anyone tried to warn people about this before.”Finally, Moffat said he’d found the perfect coach for the team — “someone even Twitter can get behind” — fan favorite LeVar Burton (played by Kenan Thompson).‘Squid Game’ Segment of the WeekIt was only a matter of time before “S.N.L.” took on “Squid Game,” the dystopian South Korean serial that’s become a widely watched hit on Netflix. The show came at it from a somewhat oblique angle in this country music video where Davidson and Malek start out singing about the unusual lengths they will go to in order to earn money. As the lyrics run:Yes I’m broke and it’s a damn shameGuess I gotta play the Squid GameYes I gotta play the Squid GameMy only option is the Squid GameHave a number not a real name‘Cause I’m playing in the Squid Game.You know what comes next, of course: masks, jumpsuits, and a giant talking doll leading a murderous round of Red Light, Green Light.Celebrity Overload of the WeekA satirical game show called “Celeb School” allowed several “S.N.L.” cast members to indulge in offbeat impressions of famous figures, including John Oliver (Mikey Day), Jennifer Coolidge (Chloe Fineman), Adam Driver (James Austin Johnson), Kristen Wiig (Melissa Villaseñor), George Takei (Bowen Yang) and Lil Wayne (Chris Redd). But its real achievement may be providing a platform for Pete Davidson to play Rami Malek and for Rami Malek to play Pete Davidson. (One of them nails the assignment, but in fairness he has an Academy Award.)If that’s too conceptual for you, there’s also this segment in which Malek and Thompson play themselves, competing for the role of Prince in a biopic directed by Jordan Peele (Redd). Stick around to the end and your reward is a cameo appearance from Daniel Craig, dressed as a Renaissance-era prince and air-guitaring the opening riff from “Kiss.” (Craig also appeared in a later sketch, playing an audience member at an unusual improvised musical performance.)Weekend Update Jokes of the WeekOver at the Weekend Update desk, Jost and his co-anchor Michael Che riffed on President Biden and the latest challenges facing his legislative agenda.Jost began:The Biden administration’s climate plan is likely to be dropped from the budget bill after Senator Joe Manchin refused to support it. But you know what? I’m not going to let some bad climate news ruin this beautiful, 80-degree October day. Manchin, who’s from West Virginia, said he would only agree to Biden’s bill if it cuts clean energy and officially makes coal one of the five food groups.Che followed that up:A new report shows that President Biden is, on average, 22 minutes late for public events. Worse, he only does it to appeal to Black voters.Bowen Yang Sketches of the WeekIf you’ve felt like you haven’t seen enough Bowen Yang since he became a full member of the “S.N.L.” cast this season, this weekend’s episode made up for that in a big way.Yang got the spotlight first in a sketch about a middle school bug pageant, where he played a 7th grader cast as a feisty, fashionable daddy longlegs. (Asked how he traps his prey, Yang replied, “I slam my credit card down and say daddy’s got it.”)Yang later turned up at the Weekend Update desk, playing a gay Oompa Loompa who finds all the coverage of Timothée Chalamet’s “Wonka” movie to be “scrum-diddly-umptious,” but has not yet come out to his parents.“They live in Loompaland,” Yang explained to Jost. “It’s not as progressive as here. They, like, just got ‘Will & Grace.’” More

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    Kim Kardashian West Takes Aim at Herself in ‘S.N.L.’ Monologue

    Kardashian West hosted an episode featuring the musical guest Halsey and a parade of celebrity cameos that included John Cena, Chris Rock and Amy Schumer.When it was first announced that Kim Kardashian West would be hosting “Saturday Night Live” this weekend, the feedback was mixed — based on the reaction from some corners, you’d think they had invited Elon Musk or something.But Kardashian West, the reality TV star, entrepreneur, influencer and advocate, gamely poked fun at her own image in a self-mocking “S.N.L.” monologue that also took satirical potshots at her other famous family members and her divorce from the rapper Kanye West.And, as Kardashian West admitted in the routine, she was as surprised as anyone to find herself hosting the show.As she recounted in the monologue: “When they asked, I was like, you want me to host? Why? I haven’t had a movie premiere in a really long time. I mean, I actually I only had that one movie come out and no one told me it was even premiering. It must have slipped my mom’s mind.”Kardashian West said that “S.N.L.” offered her the opportunity to demonstrate that she was “so much more than just a pretty face.”“And good hair,” she added. “And great makeup. And amazing boobs. And a perfect butt. Basically, I’m just so much more than that reference photo my sisters showed their plastic surgeons.”She credited her father, Robert Kardashian, for stoking her interest in social justice while also reminding audiences that he was a member of the defense team at O.J. Simpson’s 1995 murder trial.“My father was and still is such an influence and inspiration to me, and I credit him with really opening up my eyes to racial injustice,” Kardashian West said. “It’s because of him that I met my first Black person. You want to take a stab in the dark at who it was?”Of course, she shouted out Kanye: “I married the best rapper of all time,” Kardashian West said. “Not only that, he’s the richest Black man in America — a talented, legit genius who gave me four incredible kids. So, when I divorced him, you have to know it came down to just one thing: his personality.”And in true “S.N.L.” style, Kardashian West wrapped up the monologue by biting the hand that fed her. “I’m so used to having 360 million followers watching my every move,” she said. “How many people watch ‘S.N.L.,’ like 10 million? So tonight is just a chill, intimate night for me.”Embarrassment of celebrity riches of the weekIf you’re a vaccinated celebrity who lives within driving distance of Rockefeller Center, ask your agent why you weren’t asked to make a cameo on “S.N.L.” this weekend: This one sketch, a send-up of reality dating shows, featured an entire season’s worth of celebrity bookings, with Tyler Cameron, John Cena, Chace Crawford, Blake Griffin, Chris Rock and Jesse Williams appearing as potential suitors for a bachelorette played by Kardashian West.Amy Schumer also appeared as one of the producers of the fictional show, who has decided she wants to vie for Kardashian West’s affections. Maybe don’t get too invested in the hapless contestant played by Kyle Mooney, who is blissfully certain he has just as much of a shot as his famous rivals.Freaky Friday of the weekThere was no way a Kardashian-themed episode of “S.N.L.” was going to leave out the other members of that camera-friendly family. At least some of them are put to good use in “The Switch,” an homage to body-swapping comedies that finds Kardashian West and Aidy Bryant trading identities for what’s supposed to be 24 hours — until Bryant decides she isn’t swapping back. (If that didn’t satisfy your appetite for Kardashian-centric humor, there’s also this parody of “The People’s Court,” featuring a mix of actual Kardashians and “S.N.L.” cast members playing Kardashians and other assorted would-be celebs.)Weekend Update jokes of the weekAt the Weekend Update desk, the anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che riffed on Facebook’s troubled week, in which a whistle-blower, Frances Haugen, testified about the company’s internal research, and the site and its products suffered lengthy outages.Jost began:This week we found out that sometimes a guy in a hoodie actually can be dangerous. Internal documents show that Facebook knew its platform was used to spread hate and misinformation, but they hid the evidence. Now the weird thing is, I went to school with Mark Zuckerberg and I was there when he created Facebook. And I feel terrible. Sometimes, I wish I had a time machine so I could go back to college and find Mark and say, “Hey, man … can I be part of your company?”He added:Facebook’s also denying a report that says using Instagram can cause users to develop a negative body image. Which explains their rival’s new slogan, TikTok: bring your fat ass over here.Che picked up on the social media thread:This week Instagram was down for an entire day. Forcing many Instagram addicts to fill their time with Twitter, TikTok or hosting “S.N.L.” [Behind him, a screen showed an image of Kardashian West delivering her monologue from earlier in the show.]Then he went on to note some other media news, with a personal touch:Fox News turned 25 this week and they celebrated their birthday the same way that I do: by paying white women to say some nasty stuff.Going your own way of the weekIf a whole generation of “S.N.L.” viewers doesn’t actually know what Lindsey Buckingham sounds like, it might be because they recognize him only as a perpetually silent guest (played by Bill Hader) on the overstuffed talk show “What Up With That?”The onetime Fleetwood Mac singer and guitarist has since been cut loose from his old band and released a new solo album, and “S.N.L.” finally let audiences hear Buckingham’s voice on the show — as sung by himself, accompanying Halsey on a performance of her song “Darling.” (Don’t worry, he still didn’t speak at goodnights.) 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    For Al Franken, a Comeback Attempt Goes Through Comedy Clubs

    Onstage, the ex-senator and “S.N.L.” star doesn’t exactly address his fall from grace. But he doesn’t not address it either. Asked if he’ll run again, he is noncommittal.It was a fairly typical night at the Comedy Cellar’s Village Underground with a procession of young comics telling jokes about bickering couples, body issues and unglamorous sex. After Matteo Lane finished his set with a story about sleeping with a porn star, the curveball came: The host introduced “the only performer on the lineup who was a United States senator.”Then Al Franken, 70, bespectacled and wearing a button-down shirt, slowly walked onstage. He looked back toward Lane, took a considered pause and in mock outrage exclaimed: “He stole my act!”Franken has been opening with that joke a lot lately as he’s been refining material in basement rooms around town in preparation for a national stand-up tour. It’s his way of addressing how much he sticks out in his return to comedy, following a Senate career that ended with his resignation after multiple women accused him of sexual misconduct, including unwanted kissing. New York comics generally don’t do impressions of the Republican Senator Chuck Grassley, of Iowa, or earnestly explain the reasons they remain Democrats. And yet, the four times I have seen Franken perform over the past month, he has consistently gotten laughs or even killed. The only time he really lost a crowd was after midnight when the fury of a rant about the Republican Senator Ted Cruz, of Texas, (involving a dispute about an assault weapons ban) crowded out the punch lines. Franken’s set went long, around 50 minutes, and a couple of comics who followed needled him. “I would have killed myself if it wasn’t for his gun legislation,” Nimesh Patel joked.In Franken’s new material, he explains how as a politician, he was often implored by his staff to not be funny. It only leads to trouble. His act presents a less censored Franken, one that includes a story of him inside the Senate cloakroom telling a joke about oral sex with Willie Nelson — with Franken deftly imitating the New York Senator Chuck Schumer and former Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill, both Democrats, as they dissect the joke. Franken’s delivery is a Minnesota mosey with a bristling energy hinting at unspoken feelings and future ambition.On the street after the Cellar show, Franken and I discussed Norm Macdonald, who had died earlier that day. Franken mentioned that when he was on “Saturday Night Live,” Macdonald had beat him out for the Weekend Update anchor job, then recalled how the NBC executive Don Ohlmeyer supposedly fired Macdonald for making jokes about O.J. Simpson, Ohlmeyer’s friend. Franken quipped: “Got to give credit to Ohlmeyer for sticking by a friend.”It’s a funny joke, but as often happens with Franken these days, it can’t help but evoke his own scandal. After all, many of Franken’s colleagues did not stick by him in the wake of the accusations. After a photo of Franken pantomiming groping a conservative talk radio host on a U.S.O. tour was released, many Democratic senators called for him to step down, and he did, denying the allegations in a resignation speech. Since then, many (but not all) Democrats have seen that reaction as a rush to judgment, including nine senators who had called for him to resign now saying they regret doing so. Some politicians who stood by their calls for him to resign, like Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Democrat of New York, have faced a backlash.Franken only recently began explicitly mentioning the fallout onstage, but glancingly, with a bit involving a masked ventriloquist’s dummy named Petey who wants to talk about how he was treated by his Democratic colleagues. Without giving away the twist, the conversation gets sidetracked.Is the comedy tour a way to rehabilitate his political career? Franken said, with a laugh, “I’m not sure this is the best way to do that.”Todd Heisler/The New York TimesAt an Upper West Side diner, Franken didn’t want to go into details, calling it a “no-win,” but said it hasn’t changed his politics. “Part of the irony of all this is I was maybe the most proactive member of the Senate on sexual harassment and sexual assault,” he said.As for his old co-workers: “I have forgiven the ones who have apologized to me,” he said, tersely.Outside the diner, a man approached and told him that he looked more handsome in person and then said in a pointed way that seemed beyond politics: “I’m in your camp.”At a few of the New York shows, there was a certain tension in the room before he got onstage, and a curiosity over how warmly he would be received. Franken said he was never anxious about it. “People like me,” he said, in a cadence that couldn’t help but evoke his character Stuart Smalley, the 12-step aficionado he portrayed on “Saturday Night Live.” After I pointed this out, Franken burst into an impression of the cheerfully cardiganed character: “I’m fun to be with.”Franken — who moves effortlessly from inside-showbiz yarns to political ones — is less deadpan offstage than on, with a slightly quicker delivery, puncturing many sentences with a booming laugh that sounds like a baritone quack.Long before he was a politician, Franken, who moved from Washington to New York in January to be near his grandchildren, was something of a comedy prodigy — performing at the Comedy Store in Los Angeles in a double act with Tom Davis while still in college, and going to work as a writer for the original cast of “Saturday Night Live.” He then pioneered a no-holds-barred style of liberal comedy with best-selling books like “Rush Limbaugh Is a Big Fat Idiot and Other Observations.” Franken still delights in skewering the right-wing media entertainment complex amid dissections of public policy, which he does regularly on a titular new podcast that welcomes a starry list of politicians, journalists and entertainers. In his show, he says, “The leading cause of death in this country is Tucker Carlson.”Franken says he is returning to comedy because it’s a “part of him,” and his conversation is filled with references to friends in the business. He said he went to the Cellar after speaking with Chris Rock and Louis C.K. But it’s hard to escape the impression that politics animate Franken more than comedy. He said he loved campaigning and being a senator, and for someone as well-known as he is, his act includes an awful lot of résumé highlights (like casting the deciding vote for the Affordable Care Act) coddled in a layer of irony that knows you can get laughs by playing the jerk. “You’re welcome” is a recurring punchline.His act presents a less-censored Franken. Todd Heisler/The New York TimesThere are moments onstage that have elements of a stump speech, and it makes you wonder if this is all a prelude to another run. When asked, Franken shifted from casual comic to preprogrammed politician: “I am keeping my options open.”What about running for senator of New York? He repeated, “I am keeping my options open.”After chuckling at this diplomatic answer, I pointed out I’m not used to interviewing politicians. Franken let out another quacking laugh and acted out a scene imagining the ridiculousness of a comic answering a question about a joke with “I am keeping my options open.”It’s worth noting that even in his telling, the first time Franken ran for senator in Minnesota, his original impulse involved a measure of payback. After Senator Paul Wellstone died in a plane crash, his successor, Norm Coleman, called himself a “99 percent improvement” over Wellstone. In his book “Al Franken, Giant of the Senate,” he describes his reaction with a flash of anger, saying he knew someone had to beat Coleman, before adding that his reasons expanded from that “petty place” to one more about helping the people of his state.In the aftermath of his scandal, which Franken described as “traumatic” for him and his family, he has been trying to work through it and rise above, he said. “I think we need more of that. It’s a struggle but I’m getting there. That’s my goal.”In a sympathetic New Yorker article from 2019, Franken said that after losing his job, he started taking medication for depression; mental health is an issue he has long worked on, he said. When I asked about this, the policy wonk, not the comedian, answered. He brought up the first legislation he passed, calling for a study of the impact on giving support dogs to veterans suffering from PTSD. The conversation moved to the gymnast Simone Biles and how she prioritized her mental health at the Olympics. Franken brought up the people who criticized her, appearing to earnestly address Biles’s situation before making a sarcastic pivot subtle enough that it took me a beat to appreciate the subtext. “So odd — people criticize other people out of ignorance,” he said, a hint of a smirk on his face. “I’d never seen that before. I was just shocked.”When asked what he would say to someone who thought this return to comedy was a way to rehabilitate his political career, Franken said: “I’m not sure this is the best way to do that.” He offered another big laugh before getting serious. “I’m doing this because I love doing this.”On Sunday, running his entire show at Union Hall in preparation for a Friday performance in Milwaukee (it’s not often you hear material in Brooklyn about the Republican Senator Ron Johnson), Franken earned a roaring response to his dummy nudging him to talk about leaving the Senate. At one point, a member of the audience yelled: “Run again!”As the crowd cheered, Franken looked momentarily flustered and flattered. He appeared to be contemplating his next move or maybe weighing a joke. But instead, he made eye contact with the man egging him on and said: “I will need your help.” More