"Saturday Night Live" handed its most closely watched chair of the season to someone who had never acted on a scripted set: Druski, the Instagram-born comedian known for sketches as the fictional party promoter "Billy," became the first host in the show's history to come up entirely through digital content rather than stand-up, film or television.
The cold open set the tone. Newly elected Texas Sen. James Talarico interrupted a sketch about Donald Trump freezing the action mid-scene, as Deadline reported, popping up to ask the cast a pointed question about the format itself.
I'm the guy who's been texting you every day asking for $5.
Sen. James Talarico
"Trump," played by James Austin Johnson, was asked how many more of those bits the show planned to run. His answer: "Infinity!" Druski's monologue got its own surprise: Emma Stone, his co-star in the upcoming rom-com "The Catch," joined him onstage in a cameo Deadline described as moral support for a friend's first time hosting. Weekend Update, meanwhile, turned to Elon Musk: featured player Jeremy Culhane played a version of the billionaire struggling to explain the outcome of Tuesday's midterm elections, after Musk had put close to $500 million behind Republican candidates this cycle.
A biopic hit becomes a sketch
The night's most talked-about segment borrowed directly from this fall's box office. "Dru Can See Everything" parodied "You Can See Everything," the Elizabeth Holmes film that became one of the year's surprise theatrical hits. Druski played Holmes after teasing earlier in the broadcast that he couldn't promise the show "no whiteface." Variety framed the episode as a test of whether "SNL" can convert online fame into live-television command, noting Druski had not yet "achieved crossover success" the way earlier internet-native stars eventually did. The Strokes served as musical guest, and NBC has John Mulaney returning to host next week.