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Mikey Madison and the Saturday Night Live writers still have a little more work to do before the Anora star makes her hosting debut this weekend.
In a new promo video for the episode posted Wednesday (March 26), Madison sits in cast member Sarah Sherman’s eclectic dressing room and points out an intriguing prop: a dark-haired, bikini-clad woman sprouting eight wax candles. “Oh! The Anora Menorah!” Sherman says, revealing that it had been used in a scrapped SNL skit prior to Madison’s visit.
“Yeah, no, I heard about that!” the actress says excitedly. “Did people think it was funny?”
“Yeah, it killed,” Sherman replies unconvincingly after flashing back to a cringe-worthy clip of the cut sketch, in which Andrew Dismukes bombs while showing off the kitschy menorah. “Definitely, people were laughing.”
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That prompts Sherman to show off an entirely-different-but-not-really sketch idea for Madison’s episode: the Anora Fedora, the prop for which finds a similar figure of the Scream star piercing through a black hat. “You guys will have other ideas, right?” Madison then asks after a nervous pause.
Not featured in the teaser is Morgan Wallen, who will appear on Madison’s episode as this week’s musical guest. The country star — who is currently gearing up to release new album I’m the Problem on May 16 — previously made his performance debut on SNL in 2020, singing “7 Summers” and “Still Goin Down” from Dangerous: The Double Album, which spent 10 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200.
This week’s episode follows Lady Gaga playing double duty as host and musical guest March 8, with past Season 50 musical guests being Tate McRae, GloRilla, Hozier, Gracie Abrams, Shaboozey, Chappell Roan, Billie Eilish and more. In the weeks following the March 29 installment, Lizzo, Elton John and Brandi Carlile will also perform on episodes hosted by John Hamm and Jack Black.
Madison’s hosting debut will follow a spectacular awards season for Anora, for which the leading lady won best actress at the 2025 Oscars earlier this month. The film picked up a total of five awards at the ceremony, including best picture, best director, original screenplay and editing.
Watch Madison’s new SNL promo video above.
It’s been a big month for Saturday Night Live between celebrating its 50th anniversary and featuring headline-making guests such as Lady Gaga, Timothée Chalamet and others. Now, the show is ready to look to the future. On Wednesday (March 19), the long-running sketch comedy series announced its next three back-to-back shows, featuring musical guests Morgan […]
Taylor Swift was only 19 when she hosted Saturday Night Live back in 2009 — about 14 years before she even met boyfriend Travis Kelce — but the Kansas City Chiefs tight end is still familiar with her episode of the show. The topic of the pop superstar’s long-ago hosting stint came up on the […]
Lady Gaga took some playful jabs at herself during the opening monologue of Saturday Night Live on March 8.
The 38-year-old pop superstar and actress, who was both host and musical guest, opened the episode with a nearly four-minute roast, making jokes about her role in Joker: Folie à Deux, duetting with R. Kelly, and her age.
“Anyway, I’m an actor now,” the Oscar and Grammy winner said. “I select films that would showcase my craft as a serious actor, films such as Joker 2. Apparently, people thought it was awesome. Joaquin [Phoenix] and I even got nominated for a Razzie, which is an award for the worst films of the year. So we won worst onscreen duo.”
Gaga continued, “But jokes on them. I love winning things. My Razzie brings me one step closer to an EGORT. It’s like an EGOT, but it’s hurtful.”
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Todd Phillips’ R-rated Joker sequel, starring Phoenix as the Joker and Gaga as Harley Quinn, earned seven Razzie nominations in 2025 after underperforming at the box office. The musical film took home Razzies for worst screen combo and worst sequel.
“Tonight, I promise to act, to sing and to not do Joker 3,” Gaga joked.
Gaga’s monologue also touched on returning to host SNL for the first time since 2013. “I know you might be thinking I’m here to promote my album, Mayhem, but I’m actually here to remind you that I’m an amazing actor,” she said, referencing her just-released seventh album.
“The last time I hosted SNL I was 27,” she added. “I’m 38 now, which is scientifically the best age for a female pop star to be. I see that most pop stars are over 40. Chappell Roan is 58. Charli XCX, she’s 75. Tate McRae is my biological grandmother.”
Gaga also poked fun at her 2013 duet with the now-imprisoned R. Kelly on the show. “I’m so happy to be back at SNL. The last time I hosted was in 2013 and every aspect of my performance aged amazingly,” Gaga joked. “So there’s no need to Google SNL 2013, Lady Gaga featuring R. Kelly. I won’t bring it up because that would be bad.”
Amid hilarious sketches, the 14-time Grammy winner delivered high-energy performances of her new Mayhem tracks “Abracadabra” and “Killah.” Check out videos of the performances here.
Watch Lady Gaga’s SNL monologue below. For those without cable, the broadcast streams on Peacock, which you can sign up for at the link here. Having a Peacock account also gives fans access to previous SNL episodes.
Lady Gaga brought mayhem to 30 Rock.
Just one day after the release of her seventh album, Mayhem, the 38-year-old pop icon and actress took on double duty as both host and musical guest on Saturday Night Live on March 8.
The evening opened with a hilarious monologue where Gaga poked fun at her movie Joker: Folie à Deux and even referenced her previous SNL hosting debut in 2013, which featured a guest appearance by the now-imprisoned R. Kelly. Amid a series of comedic sketches, the night shifted into high gear as the 14-time Grammy winner delivered two electrifying performances from her long-awaited new album.
Gaga opened with an impressively choreographed performance of the dance-pop anthem “Abracadabra,” wearing a sparkly red ensemble and surrounded by dancers in black with long red wigs, who spun around her inside a small, neon-lit structure. For her next performance of the funk-inspired “Killah,” Gaga started off backstage at Studio 8H, before moving to the main stage for a full-on, colorful dance party with a live band. She ended with an electrifying finish, rocking out next to the drum kit in a fiery display.
Gaga’s SNL appearance arrived more than a decade after she first hosted the show in 2013.
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Mayhem arrives on the heels of a successful 2025 for Gaga, which saw her chart-topping collaboration with Bruno Mars, “Die With a Smile.” The song spent five weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100, marking her second-longest-running No. 1 hit after 2011’s “Born This Way.” She also won a Grammy for best pop duo/group performance alongside Mars.
The new album features a diverse mix of production collaborators, including Andrew Watt, Cirkut and Gaga’s fiancé, Michael Polansky. In a recent interview with Billboard, she discussed the creative process behind Mayhem, explaining that its chaotic vibe was intentional.
“There have been times in my career where I had an idea in terms of how to conceptually approach a record. But I would say that this album, from start to finish, was like pieces coming together,” she said. “I did not want to turn it into anything artificial, I really wanted to allow myself to just follow the music. By doing that, it started to slowly remind me of my earlier work.”
Watch Lady Gaga’s SNL performances below. For those without cable, the broadcast streams on Peacock, which you can sign up for at the link here. Having a Peacock account also gives fans access to previous SNL episodes.
Lady Gaga is having fun causing a little mayhem at 30 Rock, with the pop star hilariously airing out some of the Saturday Night Live cast members’ business in a new promo video posted ahead of her upcoming hosting stint.
In the clip shared Wednesday (March 5), Gaga — looking low-key in a black baseball cap and T-shirt — sits at a piano in the SNL break room and openly sings observations about the comedians who filter in and out. “Andrew Dismukes is ordering a breakfast sandwich at 2 p.m.,” she croons, playing some jazzy chords.
“Devon Walker is taking a big swing with a new hat,” the 14-time Grammy winner continues when the cast member enters wearing a camouflage cowboy hat.
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“OK, what?” a slightly offended Walker asks, to which Dismukes explains, “This is her process.”
The new video arrives just a few days ahead of Gaga’s return to the comedy series, with the musician set to serve double duty as host and musical guest on the Saturday (March 8) episode. It’ll come just hours after the release of her seventh studio album, Mayhem, the day prior.
The A Star Is Born actress previously pulled double duty on the show in 2013, which may be why she’s so comfortable on the premises in the new promo video. The clip ends with a pajama-clad Heidi Gardner leaving her office with disheveled hair, after which Gaga calls her out for “trying to pretend she isn’t sleeping here, but we all know she is.”
“And the question is, ‘Why?’” the musician belts, to which Gardner tries her hand at singing: “And the answer is bedbugs!”
It’s unknown which songs Gaga will perform this weekend, but Mayhem was led by a trio of singles — including Billboard Hot 100-topper “Die With a Smile” with Bruno Mars, “Disease” and “Abracadabra.” Also on Wednesday, fans got a taste of a new track on the LP: “Garden of Eden,” a portion of which ESPN debuted in a teaser for this year’s Formula One season while declaring the track its official anthem of 2025.
Watch Gaga put the SNL cast on blast in the new promo above.
Tate McRae made her return to Saturday Night Live on March 1, delivering a pair of standout performances from her latest album.
The 21-year-old pop star graced the stage for her second appearance on the iconic NBC sketch comedy show, captivating viewers with electrifying renditions of “Sports Car” and “Dear God.” Both tracks are from her third album, So Close to What, which was released on Feb. 21.
For her first performance of “Sports Car,” McRae stepped onto a stage filled with stacked metal chairs, surrounded by male dancers in suits who appeared to be snapping photos of her. Later in the episode, she returned to the same minimalist stage design for a slower, emotional performance of “Dear God.”
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Saturday’s episode was hosted by comedian Shane Gillis.
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McRae is fresh off the release of her latest album, So Close to What. The project features previously released viral singles like “It’s OK I’m OK” and “2 Hands,” as well as a collaboration with Flo Milli (“Bloodonmyhands”). The set also includes a track with McRae’s boyfriend, The Kid Laroi, titled “I Know Love.”
So Close to What follows her 2023 album, Think Later, which debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200. The album was bolstered by singles like “Greedy” and “Exes.”
The Canadian-born star first appeared on SNL in November 2023, with Jason Momoa as the pre-Thanksgiving episode’s host. She performed two songs, “Greedy” and “Grave,” to promote her then-upcoming sophomore album, Think Later.
Later this month, McRae will launch a world tour in support of So Close to What. The Miss Possessive Tour will begin on March 18 in Mexico City and will see the singer touring through Europe, Canada and North America until the end of September 2025. Special guests for the tour include Zara Larsson and Benee.
Watch McRae’s SNL performances below. For those without cable, the broadcast streams on Peacock, which you can sign up for at the link here. Having a Peacock account also gives fans access to previous SNL episodes.
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Eddie Murphy’s impression of Tracy Morgan during “Black Jeopardy” proved to be a major hit on Saturday Night Live’s 50th anniversary special.
The iconic comedy sketch show Saturday Night Live celebrated 50 years on the air last Sunday (February 16), with one of its highlights being the return of “Black Jeopardy” featuring SNL veteran Kenan Thompson hosting as Darnell Hayes aka “Alex Treblack”. Eddie Murphy stole the show, appearing as Tracy Morgan while the real Morgan stood alongside him playing a man named Darius. Another SNL alum, Leslie Jones also played a contestant named Shanice.
“Welcome to ‘Black Jeopardy,’ the only ‘Jeopardy’ where every single viewer fully understood Kendrick’s halftime performance,” Thompson said, opening with a reference to Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show. As he introduced Eddie Murphy, who was dressed in a tracksuit similar to what Morgan wears, Murphy yelled out in an exaggerated voice uncannily like Morgan’s, “Big dog gonna make some big money!”
“Now wait a minute, Tracy. Don’t you already have a lot of money?” Thompson asked. “You gotta have a lot of money if you live like I live,” Murphy shot back. “I eat four-cheese lasagna. If they only got three cheeses, I ain’t eating it.” As Thompson tried to cut him short, Murphy stated, “I refuse to ingest three cheeses.” The sketch took another hilarious turn soon after.
“Darius, Tracy, y’all seem like you might be related,” Thompson said to Murphy, who replied: “Well, James Earl Jones is my biological father. James Earl Jones impregnated my mother on the set of ‘Claudine.’ You know what? We might be related.” The late James Earl Jones played Murphy’s father in the Coming To America movies. Morgan, dressed in a checkered short-sleeve shirt immediately replied looking annoyed, “I don’t see it.”
The sketch would take a couple more memorable comedic turns, with another SNL alum Chris Rock joining in for one question, joking that he was a fan since the 1970s when the show was called “Mama’s Got Questions”. His question asked the contestants to identify the Church Lady, a character fellow alum Dana Carvey played in the 1980s and 1990s. The answer was supplied by Tom Hanks, popping up as Doug, a MAGA supporter who he first portrayed on “Black Jeopardy” in 2016. MAGA Land didn’t like that.
Check out the entire segment above.
Lil Wayne made a surprise appearance at the SNL50: The Anniversary Special celebrations on Sunday night (Feb. 16) where he performed a greatest hits medley from his decorated Tha Carter series. From “Mrs. Officer” to the Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hit “Lollipop” and closing out with “A Milli,” Weezy jumped around his discography with […]
Lady Gaga is about to bring the mayhem to 30 Rock, with the superstar locked in to pull double duty on Saturday Night Live for the second time in her career one day after her new album drops. As announced Tuesday (Feb. 18), Gaga will both host and serve as musical guest on the sketch […]