“Saturday Night Live” recap: Host Will Ferrell opens season finale as Jeffrey Epstein

Hi! We made it! It’s SNL in Review, the final episode of season 51. It’s always both a marathon and a sprint, isn’t it? Months of work, waiting, prep, followed by downtime, culminating in spurts of pressurized creativity. That’s true for the 8H insiders, as it is for us.

And now, relief. Season finales always tend to have interesting energy, as a piece of televised live comedy, but also reading tea leaves on who will leave and who will stay. One day, that could include Lorne. Regardless of who departs after tonight, our lineup is a fitting swan song for SNL as it departs for summer hiatus. Will Ferrell hosts, back for the first time since 2019. He first joined the show as a cast member over 30 years ago. Isn’t that incredible? Easily one of the best cast members ever. (He also had a great moment sparring with another top ten cast member, Eddie Murphy, during the 50th celebration.)

Next, the musical guest! Another legend — Paul McCartney. A Beatle! He has appeared on the show four times as a musical guest, beginning in 1980, where he actually premiered the “Coming Up” music video. He returned in 1993, appearing in a few sketches, including the iconic “Chris Farley Show.” After a 17‑year gap, he came back in 2010 for the holiday episode, performing several classics. His most recent appearance was in 2012, featuring collaborations with Joe Walsh and the surviving members of Nirvana!

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I am joined tonight by, essentially, a McCartney scholar – former cast member Gary Kroeger. He’s had several jaw-dropping firsthand encounters with Beatles over the years, including McCartney. Deep cut nerds (like me) will first recall that Gary’s show tenure included an episode actually hosted by Ringo Starr! He says, “I was disappointed that Ringo wasn’t the musical guest. Herbie Hancock was a great choice, but we had Ringo! Sure, he sang with Billy Crystal, but not seeing Ringo behind his kit was a disconnect as far as I was concerned. Ringo made it clear that he didn’t want the show to be Beatle-themed, and maybe that set the tone. He did give me a drum lesson, however, backstage, that I’ll never forget. And I still have his cigarette ashes from when he and Barbara came into my office.

Cold open

Ah, yes — we are in the West Wing. James Austin Johnson is back as President Trump; his legs folded while he was in China. Jeremy Culhane reprises as JD Vance. Former cast member Patrick Weathers notes Peter Aykroyd loved Johnson’s Trump.

Trump takes a nap. We hear Ferrell’s voice. My first thought: he’s back as Bush! But no, they fade him in, covered in chains à la Christmas Carol. Ferrell is playing Jeffrey Epstein. Weathers comments: “Christ! Will even manages to look like the guy. His voice for Epstein is great. He sounds like the Fonz!”

Epstein is here to show Trump the near future of the world he has wrought. We see Ashley Padilla as Kristi Noem six months from now — she’s on QVC. Meanwhile, Colin Jost’s Pete Hegseth is helping Aziz Ansari’s Kash Patel with a beer bong. They are plugging hard water on a podcast. Weathers offers that while “Trump and Epstein are funny, I’m not PC, but I don’t feel drunk jokes play well.” Epstein and Trump sing “Just the Two of Us” to close out.

Cool to see Aziz back, people seem to genuinely enjoy his celeb casting here…

(Weathers has a new song coming out on Tuesday, folks. “Kelsey, Kelsey” — find it on Spotify!)

Monologue

The monologue starts, and it’s actually Chad Smith, drummer for the Red Hot Chili Peppers. He speaks, and I had to do a double-take. He looks remarkably like Ferrell. Will runs out, and stops him, outraged. He wants to do a hard reset. He feels weird and, lacking other ideas, takes questions from the audience. He chooses Sir Paul McCartney, who is confused: “What are you doing, Chad?!” Ferrell brings him on stage and rattles off a number of the singer’s many classic songs. “McCartney is amazing. He’s 83??” says Weathers. “Clever,” he says as his verdict. I agree. Watch it! (“Will looks thin. You think he’s been checking his A1C like everyone else?” says Weathers.)

“Get your ass behind the drums, Chad!” demands McCartney. Fun conclusion.

“Surgery”

“He stirs! Hey, sleepy head,” says a doctor (Ferrell). A patient (Mikey Day) just got his gallbladder out. One issue: during the surgery, the doctor made a massive mistake: He accidentally removed the man’s penis. Yawn. Typical Mikey Day performance — shocked and outraged. This is the first sketch of the night? Patrick Weathers saw this “twist” coming: “It’s still funny. Will is great.” Meh.

I do like Ashley Padilla’s work as the wife here. Gary Kroeger says, as far as this season is concerned: “Padilla is my MVP. I’m addicted to the way she gets angry. She’s more versatile than that, but the way she admitted this season to her kids that she ‘may have been wrong about Trump’ is already in the pantheon of great moments.”

“Bobbin’s Sacrifice”

Lord of the Rings-style Orcs are forming in front of a castle. Blowing up the castle bridge is the only way to survive. That means one of the heroes must go out and face certain death. Bobbin (Ferrell) offers to help with a patriotic and faithful song. Instead, turns out he’s changing teams. “I’m switching sides!” Standard Dan Bulla material.

“Here’s a piece of useless trivia. I worked with both Will Ferrell and Martin Freeman,” comments Weathers.

“Cast List 2″

Ferrell returns as Mr. Koenig, an over-the-top and heartless high school drama teacher who subjects his students to misery as they anxiously await the cast list for their production of Grease. This is a fun one to see again. The Bye Bye Birdie sketch was originally cut for time from Ferrell’s 2019 hosting episode, and later went viral online for its sharp, accurate satire of “theater kid” culture. Great use of the cast here, especially Kenan!

Fun cameo alert! One of Ferrell’s old castmates… Molly Shannon! As the handsy choir teacher.

Weathers offers: “Terrific, nails in the coffin of ‘WOKE’… It’s funny, even if the gags are old. Loved the kick of the wheel, hitting on all cylinders. You know, the sketches are familiar, but FUNNY! Reminiscent of the old ‘Scared Straight’ sketch by David Sheffield and the late Barry Blaustein in season 6.”

Paul McCartney performs “Days We Left Behind”

This is the lead single from McCartney’s album The Boys of Dungeon Lane. Chad Smith appears on drums. In the background: photos of Paul from growing up, including from the Quarrymen.

Gary Kroeger shares: “It’s hard for me to be objective where McCartney is concerned. I’ve thought about the Beatles in one way or another every day for the past 62 years. It isn’t an obsession — it was when I was young — it is now simply a touchstone in my life where I connect, if even for a second, with a memory or something I’ve adopted that was influenced by the music, the movies, and the moods of the Fab Four. Many of us went into music or comedy because of their wit and charm. I’ve seen McCartney in concert 8 times, including Wings Over America in the ’70s, and any time I hear three consecutive notes, that’s enough to inform me as to which song is being played, whether Beatles, Wings, or solo, and I’m immediately in the zone of appreciation of Paul McCartney.”

He adds, “There is a picture of me standing next to Sir Paul at the end of the 50th reunion. It’s a funny story because I had no intention of being there. At the end of the show, the cast moved toward the stage, and I saw Marty Short and went right to him. Marty said, ‘Hang on, I have to do the show close,’ and suddenly Paul McCartney was to my left, the red light on camera 1 came on, and I realized we were live. I didn’t plan to be there, but I DID decide then and there that I wasn’t going to move. ‘My kids and my wife will finally see that I was here.’ And, of course, there was Paul. I moved in as the goodnights were delivered, leaning toward Paul to smell what kind of aftershave he wore. I knew I wouldn’t say anything to him because I didn’t want to interrupt the moment. I shook his hand 10 years earlier at the 40th, and that was enough. Then and now, I didn’t want to make small talk with the biggest inspiration of my life. I preferred to keep him as the guy on the cover of a Beatle album with his three phenomenal mates, as the guy with the left-handed Hofner bass, as the soulful-eyed troubadour singing the first notes of ‘Hey Jude.’ I’d rather keep him as the Walrus and out of reach in the real world.”

Meanwhile, Patrick Weathers says, “I saw McCartney late last year in New Orleans. I didn’t expect to be blown away, but I was. He defies time and age. Still quick and funny. Tramped over a series of platforms and sang and played effortlessly. And he never took a sip of water or anything else… This song is beautiful.”

Weekend Update

Trump’s trip to China! Cuba’s blackouts. Kari Lake’s ambassadorship. The FIFA halftime show. Patrick Weathers says, “The studio audiences LOVE these guys.” It’s true.

To cut through the noise is Mr. On Blast (Culhane). He’s back! He talks about AI and the metaverse with lame one-liners and musical/dance punctuation. “Ha-ha – devout!” Nice return and finish.

The joke swap tradition is also back. Jost goes first. He pledges his salary to Dr. Umar Johnson’s school for boys. Worth checking this out! I won’t spoil it. (Hint: it involves a haircut.) “That was bloody wild. I am shocked. Of course, I am old, and I should be. That’s how SNL is supposed to work,” says Weathers. Yes!

“What it Feels Like to Talk to a Mechanic”

Day and Padilla brought their car in because a light came on. Their mechanic, played by Ferrell, is indecipherable. A relatable experience to many viewers, I think. McCartney reappears as one of the other mechanics. “You can pay in ass,” he says, after Day inquires about a payment plan.

“This is a Danny Aykroyd sketch. Danny and John would have killed with this one,” says Weathers. I know what he means. Think plumber butt plus Aykroyd’s knack for technical language. “Paul’s doing great despite the obvious Keith Richards jokes,” he adds. “I feel like I’m watching Saturday Night Live and laughing. Instead of SNL and walking on eggshells.”

Paul McCartney performs “Band on the Run”

McCartney previously played “Band on the Run” on the show back when Paul Rudd hosted in 2010. So it becomes one of the songs heard twice on the show, à la Eminem’s “Stan.” Elite category.

Former cast member and author of the upcoming memoir Two Tickets to Calamity, Denny Dillon, says she’s actually seen McCartney perform live once before: during SNL’s 50th anniversary concert at Radio City Music Hall! However, she notes, “I was in a Broadway show with Twiggy in 1983. She invited me one weekend to go to the Hamptons. At one point Saturday afternoon, she said, ‘Paulie was going to drop by,’ and he did! Just to say hi to his old pal Twiggs. So I met him briefly! Charming, sweet, and very handsome.”

“The Nudemans”

Chris (Dismukes) meets his girlfriend’s family. The dad (Ferrell) answers the door. He’s very charming and nice — except that the back of his clothes is exposed. It’s like “The Widettes,” except the parents are wearing exposed underwear on the backside of their clothes. I am curious about this. Why are they doing it? Are they aware?

“Mrs. Nudeman was HAWT!” says Weathers, of Sarah Sherman.

Paul McCartney performs “Coming Up”

Following the goodnights, Ferrell nods to Sir Paul, who encores with “Coming Up,” which, as noted earlier in this column, he premiered on the show back in season 5! Lore!

“I love this song. Cool set and GREAT SHOW,” says Weathers.

Final Thoughts

• Thank you to the former cast members who have contributed quotes and commentary throughout this season: John Milhiser, Gary Kroeger, Jeff Richards, Patrick Weathers, Melanie Hutsell, Aristotle Athari, Siobhan Fallon Hogan, Denny Dillon, Victoria Jackson, and Brooks Wheelan.

• Vote, please! Don’t be shy.

• Thank you to Patrick Weathers for watching live! He says the cast tonight was “great support for Will.” He shares: “Will told me he wasn’t allowed to watch the show until he was 14. Season 6 was his first experience with the show, and he said it was our season that inspired him to be a comic and aim for the show. He specifically mentioned my Dylan sketch. When Jay Roach hired me. He nor Will knew I had been a cast member on Saturday Night.”

• RIP to SNL writer and long-time Eddie Murphy collaborator Barry Blaustein. Gary Kroeger, who worked with Barry on the show, relays: “I am heartbroken. Barry was one of the kindest people I’ve ever known. He and David Sheffield were the gold standard when I was at SNL. Both amazing people, and I’ve stayed in touch with them all these years. We share socio-political beliefs too, and I was flattered when they’d read my columns. Barry will be missed by his wonderful family, his students, his colleagues, his friends, and legions of fans, some of whom don’t even know the contributions he made to comedy.”

• Speaking of Denny Dillon, it is her birthday on Monday! Your summer homework: check out this amazing conversation with her and the fellows at the Not Ready for Primetime Project. “It’s hard to follow perfection. We had big shoes to fill, but for me it was thrilling! Electric!” Check it out and look out for her book soon!

• Another fun fact via this podcast convo with Denny — be on the lookout for a new documentary featuring her and Patrick Weathers (among other VIPs) on season 6 writer Ferris Butler. He is, they say, the potential inspiration behind Ferris Bueller. I’ve had some involvement with the doc, dubbed Saving Ferris Butler, so recommend you check out it! True show lore, you won’t want to miss it.

• Enjoy the summer! Whether you’re a disgruntled neck beard show historian, a teenage stan, or someone normal… Thank you for reading! Who stays, who goes after this season?

Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly