Saturday Night Live viewers were delighted to see Cecily Strong return to the show in the latest episode of the sketch show, reprising her role as ex-Fox News host, now US attorney, Jeanine Pirro.
Donald Trump appointed Pirro as interim US Attorney for Washington DC after the president announced on Thursday (8 May) he would be pulling his support for the full nomination of Ed Martin, who currently holds the role.
“Jeanine is incredibly well qualified for this position, and is considered one of the Top District Attorneys in the History of the State of New York,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Thursday evening. “She is in a class by herself.”
This week’s cold open of SNL took a dig at Trump’s unorthodox appointment with the president, played once again by James Austin Johnson, announcing: “Jeanine will be the newest addition to my incredible team in my administration.”
Strong promptly returned to the show as Pirro, a character she played regularly during her full-time stint on SNL which came to an end in 2022.
“And what a team, Mr President,” said Strong. “I’m so proud to be part of this group full of Russian assets, booze hounds and people famous for the little baby animals they’ve killed.”
A recurring gag for Strong’s impersonation of Pirro would be to spit wine in the face of Colin Jost during the “Weekend Update” segment. A first it seemed like the joke wouldn’t be revisited but Jost also made a cameo in the cold open, where he played defence secretary Pete Hegseth, who Strong’s Pirro said was her “old drinking buddy”.
“Surprise,” said Jost’s Hegseth as he burst onto the stage and was immediately sprayed with red wine from Strong’s mouth. Jost got sprayed again when he informed Strong’s Pirro that a US F-18 fighter plane had fallen “off the aircraft carrier and into the ocean”.
The sketch then turned towards accusations that Hegseth has a “drinking” problem and the official’s numerous problems with security leaks.
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“Hey, Pete, you’re not drinking again, are you?” asked Johnson’s Trump.
“No, absolutely not, sir,” Jost said. “I promised I would never have a bottle touch my lips, but I do have some news to share. Before I do, Jeanine, you want to take a swig of this?”
Jost then handed Strong’s Pirro a bottle of liquor before adding: “I accidentally added Kim Jong-un to the group chat.” This prompted Strong to once again spit the beverage into Jost’s face as the segment came to a close.
Many fans had predicted that Strong would return this week given the news surrounding Pirro and its safe to say they weren’t disappointed.
“I gasped loudly when Cecily Strong walked out! It’s so good to see her, especially doing Jeanine Pirro again,” wrote one viewer.
A second added: “That SNL cold open…I haven’t cry/laughed like that in a loooooooong time. I watched it twice and couldn’t stop. Amazing work Colin Jost and Cecily Strong!”
A third person praised SNL creator Lorne Michaels for the move: “I had my fingers crossed that Cecily Strong would make a cameo on SNL as Jeanine Pirro dousing Colin Jost with one or more alcoholic beverages and Lorne did not disappoint.”
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Elsewhere in the episode host Walton Goggins reacted to some of the unkind headlines directed at his newfound sex symbol status.
The 53-year-old star of The White Lotus and The Righteous Gemstones was hosting the sketch show for the first time.
During his monologue Goggins referred to the popularity of his White Lotus role as Rick Hatchett, noting that the character “is pretty brooding, which the internet seemed to find attractive.”
He then read out a series of real headlines about himself, starting with Cosmopolitan asking: “Are We All Horny for Walton Goggins’s Receding Hairline?” Goggins responded: “I’ve had the same hairline since I was seven. It’s not receding. It’s holding its ground!”
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