NEED TO KNOW
- Sabrina Carpenter pulled double duty as host and musical guest on Saturday evening live October 18
- One of the show’s best moments included Carpenter’s monologue and one of the worst moments included the singer cutting his microphone during a sketch.
- SNL airs at 11:30 p.m. EST / 8:30 p.m. PST on NBC
Live from Studio 8H — it’s Sabrina Carpenter!
The late-night sketch comedy series aired the third episode of season 51 on Saturday, October 18, with the singer, 26, pulling double duty as host and musical guest.
During the show, the “Taste” musician played the role of a 12-year-old podcast host and was featured in a revival Domingo cold open. She also sang “Manchild” and an uncensored version of “Nobody’s Son.” The episode appeared to suffer from a technical glitch as Carpenter portrayed a female boss in a sketch.
Here, check out the best, worst and most oops moments in our roundup of the highs, lows and yucks from the latest episode of SNL.
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Best: Sabrina Carpenter Monologue
Carpenter’s monologue appears to have been interrupted at the beginning of SNL was delayed by college football. However, the Grammy winner quickly took the audience’s mind off their frustration of waiting for the episode to begin by playfully addressing the backlash she received for her latest album cover, Man’s best friend.
“Some people were a little freaked out by the coverage,” Carpenter said. “I don’t know why? It was just that: me on all fours, with an invisible figure pulling my hair. But what people don’t realize is that that’s how they cut it.
“If you zoom out, it’s clearly a photo from the Bowen (Yang) 50th anniversary special that helps my hair stand up,” she joked. “After Martin Short pushed me out of the buffet line and said something like, ‘Daddy needs his mini quiche.'”
Although he was mentioned, Yang was notably absent from the episode. “I miss the show tonight but it will be so much fun,” he wrote on his Instagram Stories, adding, “Sab is amazing.”
In one of the episode’s best sketches, Carpenter teamed up with Chloe Fineman, Jane Wickline and Veronika Slowikowska to form a group of 12-year-old boys hosting a podcast.
James Austin Johnson unexpectedly appeared as President Donald Trump, after being a guest on the podcast to discuss “fire” foods.
“Now I have a question for you boys. Do you think I’m going to heaven?” » Johnson said, as did Trump.
The boys weren’t sure and let Trump draw his own conclusions.
“Probably not, right? Epstein!” said SNLIt’s Trump, referring to deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. “Oh, well. You know, it’s been a good ride. I had a good time.”
Worse: Domingo cold open
The Domingo skit returned for the fourth time since its debut, with Kelsey surprising her husband Matt on his 30th birthday with a performance from his best friends.
Carpenter led the performance inspired by Taylor Swift’s “The Fate of Ophelia,” as the friends revealed Kelsey’s affair with Domingo before her chance arrival.
“This sketch aired last season and was done FOUR TIMES. Please let it die, it only worked twice,” one viewer commented on YouTube.
“Just when I thought they DONE these Domingo skits, somehow, for some CRAZY reason, they come back!” another intervened.
“THE Cold opened It’s usually about current events, right? What is that?”, joked a third.
Viewers were also not impressed when Carpenter appeared to have issues with his mic during the Girlboss Seminar sketch.
The “Nonsense” singer continued her lines even though viewers were momentarily unable to hear what she was saying.
“Who cut off Sabrina’s mic in the middle of the sketch???? They’re trying to sabotage my girlfriend 😭 #snl,” wrote one viewer on X.
“Sabrina’s mic went off. I wish we could hear what she was saying. #SNL,” another X user said.
Oops : Sabrina Carpenter: “Nobody’s Son”
After performing “Manchild” earlier in the episode, Carpenter returned to the stage to perform “Nobody’s Son”.
Viewers on the East Coast of North America were left speechless as she sang “He sure fucked me up” without any censorship, while a slight delay allowed viewers on the West Coast to have a few seconds of silence where the expletive was uttered.
This wasn’t Carpenter’s first time as a musical guest, as she previously did so in May 2024. She also recently starred in SNL50: the anniversary specialbroadcast in February.
Saturday evening live airs weekends on NBC.
