Saturday Night Live‘s 50th anniversary is one of this year’s milestone celebrations, marked by decades of iconic sketches, unforgettable musical performances, and a host of legendary guest appearances. Sunday’s event brought together beloved cast members from past and present, a culmination of the show’s enduring influence on comedy and pop culture. It was, in other words, the ultimate victory lap — a night packed with nostalgia, humor, and surprise moments. Here are the best and worst moments from SNL50: The Anniversary Special
Martin Short and Steve Martin on ‘SNL50’.
From the opening moments featuring the likes of Paul Simon and Steve Martin, SNL50 sought to weave in legends from the show’s early years, including an opening montage featuring cast photos from different SNL eras.
In his monologue, Martin also gave a nod to the show’s writers, featuring a cutaway to a few familiar faces, including Jim Downey and Robert Smigel. He was later joined on stage by former SNL cast member Martin Short and former SNL writer John Mulaney, which made for a nice blend of generations.
Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader in a Volkswagen ad featuring ‘The Californians’. Saturday Night Live/Youtube
During the show’s NYC musical sketch, John Mulaney lamented the decline of the New York arts and music scenes, noting that “the city is a bunch of TD Banks.” A good point, but one at odds with the messaging in the lead-up to the anniversary special, which was littered with cross-pollinated brand messaging.
Once upon a time, Lorne Michaels frowned on his stars cozying up to high-profile commercial work, out of a concern it would undercut their role as satirists. Today, it’s a different story. During the SNL50 red carpet special and beyond, we were treated to an Allstate commercial with the Please Don’t Destroy crew; Capitol One ads via Ana Gasteyer and Molly Shannon’s “Delicious Dish” revival; a T-Mobile “rap” featuring Kenan Thompson and Marcello Hernández. But that’s not all…
There was Maybelline’s red carpet sponsorship and new ad campaign with Cecily Strong and Vanessa Bayer; Bowen Yang and Sarah Sherman going full metal in a new campaign for CeraVe; and Volkswagen debuted a new commercial featuring “The Californians” characters. Everyone’s got to make a living, but it was too much.
Kenan Thompson, Leslie Jones, Tracy Morgan, and Eddie Murphy play ‘Black Jeopardy’. NBC
In the “Black Jeopardy” sketch, one of the night’s surprises was seeing Tracy Morgan as one of the show contestants — and, as a rival participant, the legend Eddie Murphy… as Morgan! Showtime at the Apollo and In Living Color references were the icing on the cake.
Next up: Tom Hanks returned as MAGA voter Doug, who previously appeared on the segment.
Bowen Yang, Ego Nwodim, Chris Rock, and Adam Sandler in ‘SNL’ montage.
Maybe SNL40 said it best when it comes to succinctly honoring the show’s best moments. In a long, curious pre-tape, genuinely classic moments were interspersed with modern hackery. When your thesis statement let’s you pack in practically anything — from Chevy Chase pratfalls to “Love (s a Dream” to forgettable recent scenes, like Chris Rock’s surgeon being sprayed with blood by Adam Sandler — maybe just call your segment “Montage.”
Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey. nbc
“Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey” was a segment on SNL consisting of surreal one-liner jokes written and orated by the former SNL writer that aired in the ’90s, so hearing the music, that Phil Hartman voiceover, and Handey’s demure narration during the anniversary show really took us back. It was easily one of the night’s best surprises.
Julia Louis-Drefus and Adam Driver on ‘SNL50’. NBC
After Julia Louis-Dreyfus explained that her emotional support dog took Jon Lovitz’s seat in 8H, the Veep star turned her attention to Adam Driver‘s steely, stoic gaze, which she claimed masked his attraction to her. Iconic!
Aubrey plaza on ‘SNL50’.
Aubrey Plaza has been laying low since the tragic death of her husband Jeff Baena, who died by suicide on Jan. 3. So it was moving to see her introduce Miley Cyrus and Brittany Howard’s cover of Prince’s “Nothing Compares 2 U.”
Sinead O’Connor rips up photo of the Pope on ‘SNL’. Yvonne Hemsey/getty
Speaking of “Nothing Compares 2 U,” the show honored a track famously performed on SNL by Sinead O’Connor, who died in 2023. Famously, the show cut O’Connor loose after she ripped up a picture of the Pope in protest of the church’s child sex abuse scandals.
Drunk Uncle and the Girl You Wish You Hadn’t Started a Conversation With at a Party visit Weekend Update.
The Girl You Wish You Hadn’t Started a Conversation With at a Party (Cecily Strong) announced she’s having a baby with Drunk Uncle (Bobby Moynihan)! It was fun to see Moynihan riff on show history. One qualm: No Drunk Girl?
Vanessa Bayer and Fred Armisen on ‘SNL50’.
I love Vanessa Bayer, but did not need to see the Lorne Michael’s “best friends from growing up” characters at the anniversary show. Instead, we needed Oscar winner Howard Shore here — who actually grew up with Lorne!
Bill Murray on ‘SNL50’. NBC
On Friday, Bill Murray performed as Nick the Lounge Singer during the Homecoming Concert. At tonight’s SNL50, his anchor correspondent returned to list his favorite Update hosts. Beyond the classy tribute to Norm Macdonald, Bill’s shout-out to his own brother Brian Doyle Murray was amazing. (Gail Matthius was snubbed!)
Kate McKinnon as Rudy Giuliani on ‘SNL50’. NBC
I will accept the return of Kate McKinnon‘s alien abductee character Colleen Rafferty, but her Rudy Giuliani was a huge miss to me during the 50th anniversary celebration. And for that matter, the John Mulaney musical ode to New York City does not compare to its original iteration, “Lobster Diner.” There is a legacy around NYC that needs to be grappled with, but I’m not sure musical theater is the answer. For one thing, Lin-Manuel Miranda just revisited Hamilton on SNL a mere month ago. (However, it was cool seeing Paul Shaffer and guitarist G.E. Smith back!)
Laraine Newman and Pete Davidson as Chad on ‘SNL50’. nbc
Laraine Newman reminiscing about the original Not Ready for Primetime Players years was very moving — but also funny, as her trips down memory lane were undercut by Pete Davidson‘s thoughtless dope Chad.
Gilda Radner is gone. John Belushi is gone. Seeing Laraine hold the torch for them was fantastic, as was seeing her and fellow original cast member Jane Curtin hold up a photo of Gilda during the goodnights of the 50th anniversary special
NBC
Elsewhere, Adam Sandler paid tribute to the show’s many memories and team members, including its hard-working crew. He stole the show here. (And was introduced by Jack Nicholson who was making a rare public appearance!). I will never say a bad word about something that name drops Tim Kazurinsky.
Will Ferrell as Robert Goulet on ‘SNL50’.
The commercial parody montage was a reminder of how hilarious Will Ferrell was during his time on the show — and how wasted he was wedged into the inexplicably placed Lawrence Welk Show segment. He has a deep bench of characters, so I’m not sure SNL50 made the right call tapping his Robert Goulet. (However, he does conduct himself later on with his Elf-referencing “Scared Straight” appearance.)
Mike Myers as Linda Richman on ‘SNL50’. NBC
The “Bronx Beat” sketch with Amy Poehler and Maya Rudolph was perfectly fine, but immediately was elevated when Mike Myers’ Linda Richman showed up. It was the first appearance of the Coffee Talk host since Myers hosted SNL back in 1997. And Richman’s random cameo recalled the famous moment when Barbra Streisand guest starred in the sketch back in 1992. This was cool. Plus, we got a Paul Baldwin reference! In 2025, in this economy? We are spoiled. Feast on this, friends.
Garrett Morris on ‘SNL50’. NBC
After uneven returns from Debbie Downer and “Scared Straight,” the show regained its footing by having Garrett Morris introduce Tom Schiller’s brilliant short film, “Don’t Look Back in Anger.:
Problematic sketches on ‘SNL50’. NBC (3)
Tom Hanks took a moment to “honor those countless members of the SNL family taken from us too soon.” He wasn’t speaking of late cast members, but SNL characters and sketches that have aged horribly as they featured ethnic stereotypes, sexual harassment, body shaming, animal cruelty, questionable makeup, slut shaming, sexism, and Adrien Brody in an “ethnic” wig, to name a few.
Infamous sketches like Uncle Roy and Canteen Boy were called out. (Did I miss “It’s Pat”?) But ultimately, as Hanks pointed out, the audience is at fault: “You all laughed at them. So if anyone should be canceled, shouldn’t it be you, the audience?”
Lil Wayne performs on ‘SNL50’. NBC
No disrespect to Sir Paul McCartney, but Dwayne Carter Jr. (a.k.a. Lil Wayne) clearly had the superior musical medley of the night. Backed by the Roots, the rapper performed hits including “Uproar,” “Lollipop,” “6 Foot 7 Foot,” “Mrs. Officer,” and “A Milli.” (Fun fact: Wayne first appeared on the show back in 2004, when he was featured in Destiny’s Child performance of “Soldier.”)
