Chris Rock observed there’s “a lot going on in the news” at the top of his Saturday Night Live monologue, and several of this week’s top stories turned into punchlines as the former SNL cast member returned to host the NBC show.
“I have real condolences for the healthcare CEO. I mean, this is a real person, you know?” Rock told the audience in his monologue. “But you also got to go, you know, sometimes drug dealers get shot. All right? I mean, you’ve seen The Wire, right?”
Here are big moments from that December 14 episode…
Chris Rock Gets Political
The comedian mocked many movers and shakers in U.S. politics, starting with Donald Trump: “Survived an assassination attempt. Won the presidency again by winning the popular vote. Was just named TIME [Person] of the Year. You know, it could have happened to a nicer guy.”
Rock also joked about other U.S. presidents as he addressed concerns about the dignity of the Oval Office. “This is not the most dignified job in the world,” he said. “You know, we’ve had presidents show up to the inauguration with pregnant slaves, OK? And I’m just talking about Bill Clinton. I mean, you know what country we live in.”
Rock noted how Trump is working with Elon Musk, whom Rock dubbed “the richest African American in the world.” And in a joke that elicited groans from the audience, Rock said, “Elon got more kids than the Cleveland Browns. Nobody knows how to get rid of people like a South African.”
Adam Sandler Cameos
In a sketch later in the show, ex-cast member Adam Sandler popped up — literally — as an improperly-anesthetized surgery patient. “Every workplace needs a Leslie, one annoying coworker to rag on,” Sandler’s patient says defending Sarah Sherman’s anesthesiologist character while also spraying her with blood from his ruptured artery.
“If it wasn’t her, it would be you, Nurse Michelle, or you, Unnamed Male Nurse,” the patient tells Ego Nwodim and Bowen Yang’s character.
And to SNL newcomer Emil Wakim, he says, “And you, Not Sure What Your Role in This Skit Is. But so happy you’re getting air time. Good luck. Hope your parents are proud of you.”
SNL Riffs on Your Office Christmas Party
In a pre-taped bit on Saturday, SNL hyped up a mandatory-fun-style office Christmas party like a wrestling event.
“Sixty employees, seven interns, all going hard in the same space they were working in 15 minutes ago,” the ad narrator growls. “It all kicks off at 5:45 p.m.”
And Rock popped up as a man whose real wife, played by Nwodim, becomes suspicious of his “work wife.” (“She’s so pretty,” the real wife says, striking fear into Rock’s character’s heart.)
Gracie Abrams Makes Her SNL Debut
Grammy-nominated singer Gracie Abrams graced Studio 8H for the first time on Saturday, capping off a year in which her song “Us” hit No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and her album The Secret of Us debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200.
During the show, she performed her songs “That’s So True” and “I Love You, I’m Sorry.”
Saturday Night Live, Saturdays, 11:30/10:30c, NBC
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