Glen Powell charms on 'SNL,' and Will Forte as MacGruber returns to destroy the Epstein files

If you’ve seen immoderate of Glen Powell’s movies, including “Top Gun: Maverick,” “Hit Man,” “Anyone But You” oregon “Twisters,” you astir apt already cognize that a ample portion of the actor’s entreaty is that helium goes down creaseless and easy.

With bully looks and tons of charm, he’s surely starring antheral material. But there’s besides a streak, peculiarly successful his Richard Linklater movie “Hit Man,” of a goofball drama nerd dying to interruption retired from that handsome ammunition (see also: Jon Hamm), adjacent if helium was determination to beforehand a caller enactment film, “The Running Man.”

It definite feels similar that sensibility is what helped marque for a singular occurrence of “Saturday Night Live” with Powell hosting for the archetypal time. It was the silliest occurrence truthful acold this season, and by immoderate miracle, conscionable astir each sketch successful the occurrence worked, astatine slightest connected a basal comedic level.

Powell wore wigs, astir notably successful a subject sketch astir bobs versus bangs; yes, the hairstyles. He did Norwegian and Irish accents successful respective sketches astir overenthusiastic actors successful a Nordic movie and 1 modeled aft Liam Neeson’s “Taken” films. He adjacent wore a agelong ponytail and sang successful a pre-recorded philharmonic fig astir men who miss their ex-girlfriend’s dada (Powell was 1 of the dads). But helium was besides a large supporting subordinate to Marcello Hernández successful a sketch astir comedian Sebatian Maniscalco astatine a bachelor enactment and 1 astir a pistillate (Ashley Padilla) who joins friends astatine a edifice aft a disastrous hairsbreadth salon visit. And helium did immoderate bully soundless acting successful a ocular gag-driven sketch successful which AI exertion brings aged photos to beingness badly.

It was a week wherever adjacent the instrumentality of erstwhile formed subordinate Will Forte, who appeared successful 3 caller MacGruber sketches wherever the quality finds retired he’s successful the Epstein files (explosions follow), didn’t afloat overshadow a batch of different precise bully pieces.

Two speedy notes astir this week’s episode: Padilla continues to assistance anchor the amusement with fantabulous sketch performances, this clip arsenic the hairsbreadth styling victim, a shocked grandma successful a nursing location and arsenic White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt successful the acold open. As each occurrence goes by with Padilla billed arsenic a featured subordinate alternatively of a afloat formed member, it feels similar a mistake that’s growing.

Second, this was the archetypal clip successful years that “Weekend Update” had nary impermanent segments. We’ll get to that successful a bit.

Musical impermanent Olivia Dean performed “Man I Need” and “Let Alone the One You Love.”

President Trump (James Austin Johnson) acold opens are getting to beryllium a mixed blessing; the content is inactive solid, and the president is surely successful the quality capable to warrant addressing each week. But the format of the sketch, opening with the premise of the quality of the week and past being interrupted by a meta Trump monologue, feels reflexive astatine this point, the casual reply for wrapping up progressively disjointed and weird quality cycles. At the White House, Leavitt downplays quality of the merchandise of Jeffery Epstein’s emails, defending the president as, “loving excessively overmuch and perchance excessively young.” When a newsman asks astir millions of dollars being sent to Argentina, she tries to crook attraction backmost to the files, which leads to Trump appearing and asking questions specified as, “If determination were thing incriminating successful the files, wherefore would I screen them up?” and “If I were innocent, wouldn’t I conscionable merchandise the files?” The president offers to merchantability framed copies of the Epstein emails astatine $800 a pop. The rambling defence leads to a Trump Multiverse Theory, which posits that Trump exists crossed galore timelines and we hap to unrecorded successful the worst one.

In Powell’s monologue, the histrion admits he’s been truthful publicized that adjacent he’s bushed of seeing his ain face. “You cognize who is not bushed of seeing my face?” helium asked. “Your mom.” Powell pushed backmost against the communicative that helium was an overnight success; he’s been acting since helium was 10, starting with commercials and information videos, portion increasing up successful Austin, Texas. Powell revealed that helium was expected to big “SNL” 4 years agone arsenic portion of the publicity circuit for “Top Gun: Maverick.” But erstwhile the movie was delayed due to the fact that of the COVID-19 pandemic, the connection was enactment connected hold. A UPS operator who showed up erstwhile Powell was celebrating the archetypal quality astir hosting “SNL” ended up successful a selfie with the histrion and his family. Powell said his sisters tracked down the operator and Powell invited him to travel spot the show. Thus, Mitch the UPS Driver appeared successful the monologue and again astatine the extremity of the amusement for the goodnights. Glen ended the monologue saying, “The champion things successful beingness don’t hap overnight. No 1 knows that amended than UPS.”

Best sketch of the night: AI has not precocious capable to get crotches right

A household is visiting their grandma for Thanksgiving astatine an assisted-living installation and arsenic a treat, they’ve utilized an app to animate immoderate of her aged black-and-white photos utilizing artificial intelligence. But the AI tin lone ideate truthful much; it brings to beingness a canine with tails connected some ends alternatively of a head, an aged household person who takes disconnected his pants to uncover a Ken doll-like crotch (Mikey Day) and a horrifying babe that folds similar an accordion arsenic an atom weaponry goes disconnected successful the background. Padilla’s reactions and the soundless drama from Day and Powell instrumentality this sketch implicit the top.

Also good: Of people MacGruber is successful the Epstein files, however could helium not be?

It’s ever bully to spot Will Forte backmost connected “SNL,” and this clip helium brought backmost his astir fashionable quality for 3 abbreviated video segments continuing the communicative of MacGruber, the tech wiz who ever ends up failing to disarm a ticking clip bomb. This time, the timepiece is ticking arsenic MacGruber’s companions (Powell and Chloe Fineman) fig retired that MacGruber is successful the Epstein files. Their archetypal clue? Just aft thumbing done a copy, helium instantly tries to shred the full document. Over 3 sketches, MacGruber stalls, deflects, past yet decides to attest against those who really engaged successful behaviour worse than his connected Epstein’s land — until helium finds retired helium could get paid tons of wealth to support quiet. Cut to the sketch-ending explosion.

‘Weekend Update’ winner: No impermanent segment, but 2 precise comic bits

Usually connected “Weekend Update,” formed members specified arsenic Bowen Yang oregon guests travel connected to bash a fewer minutes arsenic a quality oregon arsenic themselves. This week, determination seemingly wasn’t clip for that, truthful “Update” was thing but Colin Jost and Michael Che jokes. There were 2 that stood out, however. One was astir a salacious rumor involving Trump and erstwhile President Bill Clinton that’s precise hard to sermon successful item successful this space. A video that ended up with a precise evidently spliced portion of audio arsenic a punchline went implicit truthful good Jost had to halt to cod himself from laughing truthful hard. The different was a great, elemental gag astir the U.S. Mint ending accumulation of pennies. “Makes nary cents!” Che exclaimed. Nice one, Che.