The Michael Keaton/Cecily Strong promo for this week’s Saturday Night Live is checking all the boxes. We’ve got an interesting factoid about Keaton (his name is actually Michael Douglas), a bit of the ol’ Batman voice, a Birdman Oscar snub mention, a quick terrible morning show host routine that I need more of in my life, jewelry, and a Multiplicity reference.
It’s not just a reference, though. Keaton clearly dug deep to fall into his dopey clone character from the ’90s classic, but it also raises some moral questions about a sci-fi film whose science wasn’t really explored at the time. Did you know that Dr. Leeds’ clone machine was powered by people?! I sure didn’t, but it’s evident that it is in that Cecily Strong transforms into a secondary Keaton after she fiddles with the machine. Kind of takes some of the fun out of the movie, doesn’t it? And who are these people that Leeds used so that Doug could take in a ballgame or take boat lessons? The optimist in me says that maybe he had volunteers — which somehow makes it okay — but deep down, I know that he probably lured hobos to his lab with promises of warmth and cuisine. And that’s not okay.
