‘SNL’: Last Night's Cold Open Drops Jokes About DMX and Prince Philip

The cold open for Saturday Night Live last night was a skit centered around a fictional [...]

By Daniel S. Levine

The cold open for Saturday Night Live last night was a skit centered around a fictional Minneapolis local news broadcast. Cast members Kenan Thompson, Kate McKinnon, Ego Nwodim and Alex Moffat played journalists who began by discussing Derek Chavin, the former police officer on trial for the alleged murder of George Floyd. The segment later touched on other topics like DMX and Prince Philip, who both died on Friday.

At first, the four journalists all agreed that the evidence shows Chauvin should be convicted, but Thompson and Nwodim were not confident that would actually happen. "Historically, police have gotten away in cases like this," McKinnon said. "Historically?" Thompson questioned. "She means every single time," Nwodim said. "Oh!" Thompson nodded. Sensing he was putting his foot in his mouth, Moffat asked the meteorologist, played by Chris Redd, to comment. "Don't put me in this mess! I'm still in hot water for being in that Paul Pierce video!" Redd said.

After the discussion got heated, Nwodim suggested they move on to other topics. Thompson and Nwodim listed all the things that need to be worked on, and McKinnon and Moffatt agreed on everything... until Nwodim noted how there needed to be reparations. They then moved on to the celebrity deaths on Friday, with McKinnon noting that "royalty" died. She was referring to Philip, but Thompson and Nwodim noted DMX died. "I was talking about the prince," McKinnon said. "Girl, Prince been dead!" Nwodim said. "She means Prince Philip," Moffat said. "Meghan Markle's boyfriend?" Thompson asked. The only news story they could agree on was U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz's scandals.

This was the second episode in a row featuring a guest host not known for comedy. Last weekend, Judas and the Black Massiah star Daniel Kaluuya hosted for the first time. This week, SNL brought in Promising Young Woman star Carey Mulligan, with Kid Cudi as the musical guest. Both Kaluuya and Mulligan were recently nominated for Oscars for their work in the Best Picture nominees.

The April 3 episode also opened with a second Oops You Did It Again sketch, with Chloe Fineman playing Britney Spears again. The set-up for the talk show features Spears introducing newsmakers from the previous week, giving them an opportunity to apologize for their actions. Chris Redd played Lil Nas X, who made headlines for his "Satan Shoes" and the "Montero (Call Me By Your Name)" video. Then, McKinnon wore a clunky skunk outfit to play Pepe le Pew, who announced he is going to sex addiction treatment. Pete Davidson starred as Gaetz. SNL episodes air Saturdays at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBC.

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