Between a rather disgusting, but heartfelt, message about Thanksgiving and yet another Trump-focused cold open, this weekend’s Will Ferrell-hosted Saturday Night Live had plenty of sketches for all kinds of tastes. Yet one of the more entertaining and enjoyable aspects of the 45th season’s seventh episode was the fact that Lorne Michaels and company enlisted the help of so many other SNL alums to pop in here and there to give Ferrell a helping hand.
As Entertainment Weekly noticed in a running tally the outlet kept for the evening, Ferrell, who served as a regular SNL cast member for seven years, shared the stage with the likes of Tracy Morgan, Maya Rudolph, Rachel Dratch, and Fred Armisen.
#SNL alum count tonight:
Will Ferrell (1995–2002)
Tracy Morgan (1996–2003)
Maya Rudolph (2000–2007)
Rachel Dratch (1999–2006)
Fred Armisen (2002–2013) pic.twitter.com/d2K96Yzw7L— Jillian Sederholm (@JillianSed) November 24, 2019
The first of these occurred during the oddly Ryan Reynolds-themed monologue, in which Ferrell noticed the Deadpool actor in the crowd and bantered with him throughout it. “I just wanted to enjoy the show,” Reynolds declared at one point. “Can you just please stop addressing me?” At that point, the crowd erupted as Morgan walked onto the stage to join Ferrell for the final minute. “Now you listen to me! The prophecy must be fulfilled. This is Will Ferrell,” the comedian exclaimed. “He can do what he wants to do.”
As for Rudolph, Dratch, and Armisen, they joined Ferrell in the evening’s “2020 Democratic Debate” sketch for a round of political satire. Rudolph reprised her audience-pleasing impression of Sen. Kamala Harris, while Dratch played Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Armisen performed as former New York mayor turned presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg. “I tipped the doorman $30 million,” he said when asked how he was able to enter the debate stage.
As is often the case, the SNL alums’ presence was more geared toward garnering plenty of “clapter” from the audience instead of telling jokes, but it was still fun to see so many of Ferrell’s peers on stage with him again.
(Via Entertainment Weekly)