There was a monologue. There were songs. There were sketches. In the middle there, there was some news. In structure as well as in tone, SNL50: The Anniversary Special hewed quite closely to, well, your standard episode of Saturday Night Live. Except it was more than twice as long, featured more stars than a desert night sky, and made a point of celebrating the show’s legacy, and the debt so many people in that room felt towards show creator Lorne Michaels.
One of the major deviations from the established format came right at the beginning, as instead of opening with an impression-filled political sketch, Sabrina Carpenter and Paul Simon came on to make some sharp jokes about their respective ages and perform “Homeward Bound.” From there, the opening credits — a sweetly done blend of cast photos throughout the years — led into a monologue featuring Steve Martin, who shared the stage briefly with John Mulaney and Martin Short.
Mulaney took that opportunity to make it clear to the A-list audience just what he thought of the former hosts amongst them. “The most difficult people I’ve ever met in my entire life,” he said. “It’s amazing to me that only two of them have committed murder.” (That wouldn’t be the only time Robert Blake and O.J. Simpson would come up over the course of the evening.)
The show featured musical performances from Miley Cyrus and Brittany Howard and Paul McCartney. But — perhaps because SNL just put on a whole freaking concert two days ago — the real emphasis here was on the comedy.
Every live sketch was a tribute to a past running sketch format — appropriately enough for a tribute show. Things kicked off with the return of “Lawrence Welk” and Kristen Wiig’s tiny tiny hands, followed by “Black Jeopardy,” with Tracy Morgan and Eddie Murphy as Tracy Morgan.
2024 phenomenon Domingo also made an appearance, accompanied by Pedro Pascal and Bad Bunny, and Mulaney assembled a cross-generational mega-cast for a new tribute to Broadway musicals. Well, new-ish — he’s done Les Mis before, albeit not with Wiig, Jason Sudeikis, and Will Forte committing incredibly hard to “One Day More.” And the sketch’s brief tribute to Rudy Guiliani brought back Kate McKinnon in a bald cap, always a welcome sight.
The outside world didn’t intrude too much on the festivities: Despite being invited, former hosts Donald Trump and Elon Musk were not present. There was a crack during Weekend Update about how, if the current administration had its way, this would be the final season of the show. Oh, and it turns out that the Girl You Wish You Hadn’t Started a Conversation With at a Party (Cecily Strong) is working as press secretary for the current administration.
But the spirit of the night stayed celebratory, almost determinedly so. Nothing felt dangerous enough to tempt the new regime’s ire. Really, the most topically spicy moment came during the audience Q&A, when Ryan Reynolds was asked how he was doing. “Great!” He paused. “What have you heard?” A fair question for him to ask, given the storm of gossip and legal actions that we might lazily refer to as It Ends With Us-gate.
Meanwhile, as an exercise in nostalgia, the show was on target: One of the more affecting sketches was a pre-tape that introduced Laraine Newman (as herself) to Pete Davidson’s Chad — a sweet two-hander that benefitted from its focus on just those two characters. Adam Sandler’s song was another affectionate ode to his former workplace and the friends he still misses. And as an emotional climax, nothing could be better than Garrett Morris introducing a film from the 1978 season, in which old man John Belushi visits the graves of all the Not Ready for Primetime Players he’s survived.
Like even the best episodes of Saturday Night Live, there were some rough spots. In this case, those rough spots often came from overstuffing sketches with additional characters, just to make sure everyone got a little screen time. This was so pervasive throughout the night that it was almost a blessing when Seth Meyers called out the audience Q&A section as “just a way to give some airtime to celebrities who aren’t in other parts of the show.” (Though Ray Romano and Reverend Al Sharpton both thought it had a very natural flow to it.)
Did tripling the amount of cast in every sketch lead to great comedy? Not all the time, especially because with so many complicated elements involved, it definitely felt like a little more rehearsal would have gone a long way. But as just one example, seeing Murphy’s Morgan impression — and seeing the way it annihilated Leslie Jones’ composure — was a fresh reminder of why this show has thrived for so long as live television.
Each sketch also highlighted the cumulative star talent that Michaels has curated over the years; a God-like force that can unite Will Ferrell and Eddie Murphy for a sketch, followed by Paul McCartney playing a Beatles medley. More people than can fit inside the SNL offices owe him their careers. Meryl Streep made her SNL debut, as the mother to McKinnon’s long-suffering alien abductee. Meryl Streep! The power of Lorne cannot be denied.
This really stood out in the moments that combined the new with the old: David Spade in Mulaney’s Broadway tribute, Andy Samberg and Bowen Yang bonding over anxiety, Debbie Downer pouring drinks for Ayo Edebiri. So many generations of talent, present to pay tribute to the show’s legacy. Which is inextricable from that of its creator.
“Thank you, Lorne,” Sandler sang on Sunday night. The whole night sang that, in its way.
SNL50: The Anniversary Special is streaming now on Peacock.