Top 10 Saturday Night Live Fake Ads

Sometimes a well-written straight-up parody of an existing commercial is all you need to get a good laugh. Sometimes... having a comedic genius like Jim Carrey do a note for note imitation of Matthew McConaughey’s bizarre Lincoln auto commercials is enough to create a classic SNL segment. Veering only slightly from the style and script of these ominously prosaic car ads, Carrey and the SNL writers deliver a hilariously deadpan impersonation, which sees McConaughey asks himself life’s deepest questions - like what to do with a booger you are rolling around on your fingers.

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#9: The Undecided Voters

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The pre-election period is a busy time for “SNL”. While the show’s political humor is typically straightforward - utilizing news coverage and impersonations - they took a bit of a left turn with this public service announcement to attack those pesky undecided voters. And sure enough, the results were in their favor. As America was gearing up to vote for Obama a second time around, they took this politically-apathetic but self-serious demographic to task. The questions in this skit might seem ridiculous and exaggerated but honestly, don’t we all know someone like these sadly uninformed individuals?

Ever wonder what it would be like if your period wasn’t once a month, but instead condensed into one period of menstruation per year? No? Well, the SNL staff have thought about it, and they decided to turn it into a nightmare-inducing bit of advertising. With classic moments by Kristen Wiig and Tina Fey, the ladies in this video perfectly parody that terrible style of infomercial acting. That is until their periods hit, and we all just want to run for cover, screaming for our lives. The list of side effects at the end is the cherry on top, with bonus points going to Kristen Wiig for making out with a dog.

Politicians and sports stars are not actors, and have often fallen a little flat on “SNL”. Peyton Manning however, has been called by many the funniest athlete to ever guest star on the show, and this sketch is valid proof. The United Way ad shows a more thuggish version of Manning as the absolute worst mentor a kid could ever ask for. His methods include bullying, hitting kids, giving them tattoos and of course teaching them how to break into a car. All said and done, it makes for one hilarious sendup to NFL mentorship videos.

If you’ve ever raised a dog from puppyhood, you know how frustrating it can be. Like Will Ferrell, you likely tried all the usual tricks. But thanks to this amazing innovation, you too can now train your puppy with “mockery and verbal humiliation”. Featuring a 5-part video cassette series, this handy training manual teaches pet owners how to verbally abuse their pets into obedience and submission. These may seem like extreme methods, but seeing Will Ferrell calmly insult his dogs is immensely entertaining, even though we feel bad for laughing.

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#5: The Love Toilet

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An absolute classic of early 90s “SNL”, “The Love Toilet” started off as a seemingly classy little commercial until the introduction of the product in question - which is one we hope we never have to see in real life. We all know those couples who do absolutely everything together. You know… the ones that seemingly cannot spend so much as a second apart? Well, the Love Toilet enables those insufferable couples to remain attached at the hip, even at their most intimate moments. The romantic music-video aesthetic may feel like a bit much, but it really sells the absurdity of this product.

In season 40, SNL knocked it out of the park with this #mycalvins parody, in which Kate McKinnon delivered a spot-on and seriously funny Justin Bieber impersonation. However, this wasn’t the first time that the SNL team used Calvin Klein as inspiration for comedic gold. In their 13th season, they produced a classic and hilarious parody of the famous Calvin Klein Obsession ads. It featured the late-great Jan Hooks as a compulsive cleaner who finds better uses for her cologne on her very white walls. OCD has never looked this classy.

Fast food: though most of us partake of it from time to time, when visiting one of these fine establishments, it can be hard not to do a double take at some of the menu items. The bigger the better, right? Proving that one can have too much of a good thing, this ad pushes over-the-top fast food to the extreme. Though Bill Hader, Jason Sudeikis and Andy Samberg seem relatively excited about these upgraded tacos, with every layer of added food, the ad pushes further into the realm of the absurd. By the end, eating one of these monstrosities is all but impossible. A tasty bit of satire… this SNL ad never gets old!

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#2: Mom Jeans

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Taking bad fashion to task, this ad for “Mom” style jeans tells it like it is. This unfortunately cut, deeply unflattering and yet seemingly timeless style of jeans does not look good on anyone, and yet, for generations, they’ve somehow found their way into the wardrobes of mothers around the globe. It’s weird, but we’ve all just learned to accept them. Seeing the likes of Tina Fey, Amy Poehler and Maya Rudolph strutting their stuff and seemingly having a ball in these high-waisted wonders however, is almost too much too handle. On point both as comedy and light-hearted commentary, this ad almost makes us want to give mom jeans a try. Just kidding.

Before we reveal our top pick, here are a few honourable mentions:

Oops! I Crapped My Pants

Swiftamine

Damn it, My Mom is on Facebook Filter

Over its many decades of service making people laugh, SNL has also made a habit of pushing the boundaries. Back in 1991, you can bet that this fantastic takedown of heteronormative beer advertising got some strong reactions from viewers. In a classic setup, Adam Sandler and Chris Farley play two house sitting bros clearly looking to throw a party. When all their dreams come true however, the bikini-clad girls that typically populate beer ads are nowhere to be seen, and are instead replaced by banana-hammock wearing beefcakes. The critique of nonsense wish-fulfilment beer advertising is fantastically on-point, and the curveball remains hilariously relevant, even today.