‘SNL’ season 50’s biggest moments (so far): Kamala Harris, Bill Burr, and more memorable highlights - The Boston Globe (2025)

As the clock ticked down on the 2024 presidential election, Democratic nominee and now former vice president Kamala Harris made a surprise cameo during the cold open on Nov. 2. In a star-studded sketch that also included appearances by Andy Samberg, Jim Gaffigan, and Dana Carvey, Maya Rudolph played Harris preparing to give a speech, only to have the real Harris appear in her dressing room mirror as a reflection.

Bill Burr returned to host “SNL” during its first episode following the 2024 presidential election, and the Canton comic delivered a very not-PC monologue that drew some ire online, particularly for his assessment of female candidates and their attire choices. The opening moment aside, Burr turned in another hilarious performance later in the episode, once again playing a disgruntled Boston sports fan in a Buffalo Wild Wings commercial skit.

Country musician Morgan Wallen caused some controversy of his own during the March 29 episode, which was hosted by Oscar-winning “Anora” star Mikey Madison. During the show’s closing moments, where the cast and guests traditionally stick around on stage as the credits roll, Wallen abruptly walked off instead, later posting a photo of a jet on his Instagram story with the caption, “Get me to God’s country.” Some fans online interpreted the moment as a slight towards “SNL,” with even cast member Kenan Thompson criticizing the choice, telling Entertainment Weekly that it was “a spike in the norm.”

While Dave Chappelle didn’t take the stage for the first “SNL” episode after the election as he had done in 2016 and 2020, the veteran comic still made a bit of history while hosting on Jan. 18. Chappelle delivered the longest monologue in the show’s five-decade run during his latest stint, with the opening standup sequence clocking in at nearly 17 minutes. Chappelle’s record-setting appearance beat out his previous record of 16 minutes and 9 seconds during his “SNL” monologue in 2020.

The biggest breakout character of season 50 has to be lovable lothario Domingo, played by cast member Marcello Hernández. The singing ladies man debuted in the Oct. 12 episode hosted by Ariana Grande, where he helped a group of bridesmaids belt out a parody of Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso,” but with the words remixed to detail his tryst with the bride (Chloe Fineman). An instant pop culture sensation, Domingo returned for the Nov. 16 episode hosted by Charli xcx, and later appeared during February’s “SNL50″ special opposite Carpenter, Bad Bunny, and Pedro Pascal.

“SNL” gave “The White Lotus” a White House makeover with its parody featuring Trump family members and administration officials on vacation. However, the skit caused a bit of drama, as cast member Sarah Sherman’s character featured an exaggerated gap-toothed smile, poking fun at “White Lotus” star Aimee Lou Wood. The actress called the parody “mean and unfunny” in a social media post, but she noted in later posts that she received “apologies” from the show, as well as flowers from Sherman.

A big no-no of live broadcast television is swearing on air, but that didn’t stop the “SNL” audience members from cursing during Weekend Update on April 5. During a bit led by cast member Ego Nwodim, the audience surprisingly replied with a loud expletive during a call-and-response moment, stunning Nwodim and anchors Michael Che and Colin Jost. “We finna get fined for that,” Nowdim joked.

February’s massive anniversary special was chock full of great moments for longtime “SNL” fans. Among the highlights: Tina Fey and Amy Poehler brought the laughs during a star-studded Q&A with the audience, Kate McKinnon and Meryl Streep teamed up for a side-splitting close encounters skit, and Beatles legend Paul McCartney performed. However, the biggest heart-tugging moment came during Adam Sandler’s acoustic set, paying tribute to old pals like Chris Farley while celebrating 50 years of “SNL.”

It’s not often that a celebrity who isn’t a full-time musician will pull double duty as both host and musical guest. But that didn’t stop star Timothée Chalamet from crooning while hosting the Jan. 25 episode. Fresh off the release of his Bob Dylan biopic “A Complete Unknown,” Chalamet performed a medley of Dylan tunes, with some help from James Blake, during his first musical appearance and then sang a rendition of the Dylan song “Tomorrow Is a Long Time” later in the show.

Speaking of stars pulling double duty, Lady Gaga also served as both host and musical guest on the March 8 episode. The pop megastar’s biggest moment came during her performance of “Abracadabra,” a show-stopping number off her latest album “Mayhem.” Singing live while hitting each step of her action-packed choreography, Lady Gaga’s performance is a top contender for best musical guest moment of the season.

It’s a running tradition on “SNL” to welcome guests who host the show five times into its illustrious Five Timers Club. Comedian Martin Short finally earned his jacket during the Dec. 21 show, where fellow frequent hosts Melissa McCarthy, Paul Rudd, Tom Hanks, Tina Fey, John Mulaney, Alec Baldwin, Jimmy Fallon, Emma Stone, and Scarlett Johansson stopped by for Short’s big milestone.

President Donald Trump’s return to the Oval Office has inspired quite a few moments during season 50, but the show really got the internet talking with its take on his tariff announcements, with a video of the scene earning nearly 9 million YouTube views. During the April 5 cold open, “SNL” poked fun at the president’s reciprocal tariff chart, with a little help from Mike Myers as Elon Musk.

Irish Americans: Irish actor Paul Mescal gives Irish Americans their dream Emerald Isle welcome in this hilarious cut-for-time skit.

Moo Deng: Bowen Yang helped kick off the season in style by channeling his inner Moo Deng during the season premiere’s Weekend Update.

Odd couple: Marcello Hernández and Jane Wickline star as the couple you can’t believe is together in another memorable Weekend Update sketch.

CouplaBeers: Shane Gillis stars in the best parody commercial of the season with this faux ad promoting beer as a new medication for dealing with life’s problems.

Goth kid on vacation: Jack Black goes full My Chemical Romance in this musical skit about a goth kid dealing with a family vacation.

Matt Juul can be reached at matthew.juul@globe.com.