We are in the home stretch! It’sSNLin Review, for the first of the final three episodes of season 51. Olivia Rodrigo isback at 8Hand this time she’s hosting! She’s been the musical guest twice before, includingduring season 46.
Double duty can be tricky, and that’s why tonight I’m glad to be joined again by formerSNLcast member John Milhiser. His season had a few examples of this — including,as previously discussed, Lady Gaga. Milhiser offers tonight that “if you're a big enough star and personality, of course, you can do double duty. It's rare, and it's about the moment. Olivia is having her moment. Let her cook.”
Besides Gaga, Milhiser saw two other cases of hosts pulling double duty. The second episode of the season, in fact, was Miley Cyrus. Milhiser recalls really enjoying his time with Cyrus, and “she visitedSNLa few times that season. She was young, having fun, in her "wild" days. I never thought she was that wild, to be honest. ‘Wrecking Ball’ was the best song. Her performance of ‘Wrecking Ball’ is legendary. From her, when she did double duty. I still have herBangerzCD she signed for me. I've never played it because I didn't have a CD player. Another fun fact, for some reason, I kept herBangerzCD in my sock drawer for years.”
Then, months later, was Drake. He “was HUGE when he hosted. It was the era of DRAKE,” says Milhiser. “Everyone was obsessed. My cousin Keith and his son Morgan came as my guests to that show. Morgan was a big fan of Drake. I wanted to be the cool uncle, so I made it a priority to introduce Morgan to Drake. Luckily, Drake was sitting at a table by himself, a few tables away from us. The stars were aligned. I said to Morgan, ‘You ready to go meet Drake?’ We walked over to Drake's table, and just when I was about to open my mouth to say ‘Hi!’ Drake's bodyguard steps in front and PUSHES me away. Very embarrassing. Drake stepped in and said, ‘No! It's okay. He's on the cast.’ The bodyguard didn't recognize me. Can you blame him? Anytoot, Drake was very nice to my cousin's son. Morgan got a great picture with him. I became a cool uncle that night thanks to Drake. He'll always hold a special place in my heart.”
Scroll below for more insights —hopefully we get some memories out of tonight that rival John’s!
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Cold Open
You’re watching a span of your life watching C-Span. We join Karoline Leavitt (Ashley Padilla), who is four, five seconds from wilding — or actually, introducing a very cringe Pete Hegseth (Colin Jost). “Is it true you suck?” he asks the press. He proceeds to call them virgins and theater kids. Hegseth just clashed for a few days with Democrats in Congress over the Iran war.
Ah, time for some stunt casting: Aziz Ansari comes out as the under siege FBI Director Kash Patel. This is precedent-setting. He’s the first Indian person to suck at their job. We touch on recent headlines, Ansari does a commendable job, given the obviousness of the casting. (He hosted back in season 42 FYI!)
Monologue
Rodrigo’s favorite cast is from when she was in high school —so, Sarah Sherman, Mikey Day, Kenan Thompson, and Chloe Fineman were cast members! Ha.
When she was 6, she began acting in Old Navy commercials, even joining a Disney Channel show opposite Jake Paul. We get a fake outtake from the ad, and she lands a nice joke about Netflix. She mentions the time she fell off stage at a concert.
Mentioning “Drivers License,” she performs a spoof sequel. This time, she’s going to the DMV. Pretty entertaining! John Milhiser comments, “Love O-Rod. For a young artist, she brings a remarkable blend of self-assuredness, vulnerability, and musical reverence. Her kind of sugar-coated pop punk with just rough-enough edges is the perfect vehicle for her Gen Z blasé confessionalism, and humor is all throughout her songwriting.”
Read the original article onEntertainment Weekly