Courtesy of NBC. Photo credit: Will Heath.
All eyes were on Lorne Michaels & Saturday Night Live this weekend as the show kicked off it's historic & milestone 50th season last night on NBC - and what a banger of a season opener it was!
Last night's cold open was filled with a ton of surprises & crowd pleasing moments, including some notable cameos from previous SNL alum & one particular stand-up comedian that the internet rallied enthusiastically to get on the show this season. Check out the season premiere cold open below!
Recapping the SNL season 50 cold open!
This season SNL 50 cold open is set similarly to the most recent presidential debate between former president Donald Trump & current vice president Kamala Harris. Unlike doing a spoof of that presidential debate, this sketch was set from the view point of ABC News anchor David Muir (Andrew Dismukes), who moderated the latest presidential debate.
And in it, we find Muir checking in with both opposing parties who are broadcasting live from their own respective rallies for this election. SNL alum Maya Rudolph returned to reprise her previous role as Kamala Harris and cast member James Austin Johnson reprised Donald Trump.
Kicking things off with Harris, she set the tone for her rally in a swing state she couldn't remember she was speaking in but just decided to call it "Wisconsi-pensylvi-georgia." Then the big reveal for who would play her running mate Minnesota governor Tim Walz was a comedy name the internet campaigned vigorously for: stand-up comedian Jim Gaffigan.
Jim's portrayal of the VP running mate was so entertaining, spot on & joyful like the Jim we know & love. The chemistry between him & Rudolph proved that this was a great pairing who we're excited to see more leading up to this year's election (Gaffigan this afternoon confirmed in a social post that this debut marks "Week 1" for him, meaning we'll definitely be seeing more of him throughout the election this Fall).
Then Harris brought out her husband & the second gentleman Doug Emhoff, who in a rather surprising (but amazing) casting placement was another beloved SNL alum, digital shorts pioneer & member of The Lonely Island Andy Samberg; who entered the stage in the most "Doug" appropriate & fitting way doing The Dougie.
The former cast member was just at 30 Rock this past week stopping by Late Night With Seth Meyers ahead of his nostalgic surprise cameo, who had plenty to joke about being a potential first gentleman including looking forward to directing the White House for Christmas (but in Hanukah theme).
Now in the latter-half of this cold open, we're taken over to Donald Trump's rally (played by James Austin Johnson) where it's currently in its third hour as people are trying to leave but they can't reportedly. And to no surprise, Johnson's Trump had plenty to poke fun with from his rally including his viral debate statement "they're eating the dogs, they're eating the cats" & repeatedly saying "it's very sad, it's very sad."
With Johnson having been more than likely predicted to return playing Trump on the show, there wasn't as much anticipation to find out who would be portraying Trump's running mate JD Vance. But to ours & many other's surprise, walking out as as the Ohio senator was none other than current & long time cast member Bowen Yang. One of the best jokes from Yang's portrayal of Vance was a remark he received from Trump saying "Just this afternoon, he told me JD, you're like a son to me because I don't like you, and I'm stuck with you."
Finally, we flip back to Harris' rally following a quick dance party where she's getting ready to thank the one man who she couldn't have gotten to this rally without: President Joe Biden. And out walking on stage is SNL alum & Fly on the Wall podcast co-host Dana Carvey playing the currently sitting president. "But guess what, and by the way, the matter of the fact is, no joke this is serious" were the among the many repeatedly funny one liners Biden said in between points on stage that made his rendition so hilarious.
With this premiere episode now in the bag, we're all the more excited to see what the rest of SNL season 50 has in store with its upcoming hosts & other celebrations around this significant season!
Where to watch the full Season 50 premiere of Saturday Night Live!
The newest episode is streaming now on Peacock. New episodes premiere on Saturdays at 11:30 PM ET on NBC!
Click right here to get the latest comedy news delivered to your inbox!
Follow 800 Pound Gorilla News on Instagram, Twitter, & Threads.
