Top 10 Times SNL Cast Members Were Caught Off-Guard

“Weekend Update: Smokery Farms”
This “Weekend Update” bit from Season 44 features Kate McKinnon and Aidy Bryant as the cheery owners of Smokery Farms, trying to pitch their meat products to vegetarian consumers. Things start off smoothly, until they’re handed a basket of raw samples. McKinnon and Bryant probably expected to be given fake prop meat, because judging by their reactions, they were completely taken by surprise by the rotting smell of the products. What began as a satire on the ethical consumption of animals quickly devolves into a survival challenge, with both performers struggling to stay in character while gagging through the stench. Not wanting to suffer alone, they eventually inch the offending basket toward Colin Jost, dragging him into their nightmare.

“Court Show”
You never quite know what you’re gonna get when you incorporate live animals into a sketch. This time, what we got was a solid 30 seconds of Cecily Strong trying, and failing, to keep it together. In this sketch, Strong plays a Judge Judy-type character in a “Dog Court,” meting out justice to badly behaved pups. While settling a dispute between two dog owners, Strong picks up her own dog, who immediately gets too excited and begins jumping all over her face. It was clear that this wasn’t part of the plan. Even the most stoic cast members would’ve had a hard time not breaking character, and Strong, bless her but she didn’t stand a chance.

“Uncle Ben”
This was one of those sketches where absolutely no one made it out with a straight face. It revolves around brand executives having to fire their beloved mascots - Aunt Jemima and Uncle Ben - after backlash over racial stereotypes. Both characters then throw the Allstate guy under the bus, who in turn does the same to Count Chocula, played by Pete Davidson. But when Count Chocula insists he’s not Black, just made of chocolate, Dave Chappelle, in a perfectly timed unscripted moment, calls out Davidson’s features. The jab was so unexpected that Davidson spat out his fake teeth from laughing. But he was not the only one cracking up. You could clearly see Heidi Gardner and Mikey Day also struggling to remain in character.

“Weekend Update: Christmas Joke Swap 2024”
Granted, the whole point of the recurring joke swap bit between Colin Jost and Michael Che is to ambush each other with wildly inappropriate material. But this one was especially shocking. Scarlett Johansson initially appeared to induct Martin Short into the Five-Timers Club, but she was then convinced to return on camera to capture her reaction to the jokes. Her unexpected presence seemed to startle Jost, who acknowledged how uncomfortable the moment was bound to be for her. Still, his reaction was nothing compared to Johansson’s when he was forced to read a particularly risqué joke about her. Although Johansson had a general idea of where the joke was headed, she didn’t know the specifics, which made the moment genuinely jaw-dropping for both husband and wife.

“Inside the Beltway”
“Saturday Night Live” runs like a well-oiled machine, with hundreds of parts moving in sync to deliver a flawless show. But of course, even the best machines have their hiccups. We got one of such hiccups during this political sketch that required multiple lightning-fast costume changes. At one point, a member of the show’s wardrobe department accidentally made a cameo by strolling into the frame too early, completely catching Aidy Bryant unawares. Although they eventually managed to pull off the costume change, the mishap sent Bryant into a fit of laughter. And once that laugh genie was out of the bottle, there was no putting it back. Bryant was unable to regain her composure until the sketch ended.

“Beavis and Butt-Head”
It took six seasons, but we finally saw the typically stone-faced Heidi Gardner break, and all it took was some unhinged prosthetic makeup. In this sketch, Gardner plays a journalist moderating a townhall about AI, which gets disrupted by two audience members with an uncanny resemblance to Beavis and Butt-Head. About halfway through, Gardner turns around to address the Butt-Head character, played by Mikey Day, only to completely lose it. Although she had already seen him during dress rehearsals, the full prosthetic makeup was supposedly reserved for the live show. So when Gardner turned around, she was completely unprepared for what awaited her. Fortunately, that surprise worked in the sketch’s favor, as her prolonged character break made it all the more hilarious.

“Weekend Update: Ego Nwodim on the White House Correspondents' Dinner”
“SNL” cast members are well aware of the consequences of cursing on air. But it appears the same cannot be said for the audience. That became clear during this “Weekend Update” segment featuring Ego Nwodim pitching herself as the comedian for the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. Nwodim debuted her stand-up persona, Miss Eggy, and decided to dabble into a little crowd work. But after referencing Cory Booker’s record-breaking Senate speech, she turned the mic to the audience, only to be hit with a swear word. You could see the stunned reactions on the faces of Nwodim, Colin Jost and Michael Che. Someone is definitely getting in trouble with Lorne Michaels. We just hope it won’t be Miss Eggy, because we need her back.

“Matt Foley: Van Down By The River”
Throughout his time on “SNL,” Chris Farley proved he was more than willing to push his body to the limit for the sake of a laugh. In his debut as the iconic motivational speaker Matt Foley, Farley gave a masterclass in physical comedy, making his fellow castmates break repeatedly, even though they had already seen the routine during rehearsals. But nothing prepared them for the unscripted moment when Farley launched himself chestfirst into the coffee table. None of the other performers knew this was coming, and you could probably guess that from the genuine horror on their faces. While Farley popped back up and forged ahead like nothing happened, the others needed a moment to fully recover from the comedic chaos they had just witnessed.

“Weekend Update: Stefon on Halloween's Hottest Tips”
Few characters on “SNL” are as memorable as Stefon, the eccentric city correspondent with bizarre recommendations for New York City parties and events, played by Bill Hader. The character was created by both Hader and John Mulaney, who would often slip in last-minute jokes to make Hader crack on air. Perhaps the most notable instance of this came in this Season 38 episode, where Stefon is brought on to share tips for Halloween events. Hader manages to hold it together for the most part, until he is hit with another surprise joke, this time about Dracula. As this was his first time reading it, Hader lost it completely, laughing so hard he pretty much halted the show for a minute.

“Short Shorts for the USA”
It was barely a month after 9/11 that “SNL” decided to poke fun at the surge of patriotism following the attacks. The resulting sketch featured Will Ferrell as an office worker who defies the dress code and shows up wearing a tight “USA” crop top and a pair of alarmingly short shorts. Judging by the reactions of his castmates, you’d think they were seeing the costume for the first time… and they were. It turns out during rehearsals, Ferrell had worn a more modest version, but for the live show, he cut out about half of it, without the rest of the cast knowing. What remained on his body left little to the imagination. There was no way anyone there could’ve kept it together.


Which of these “SNL” gags did you see coming from a mile away? Let us know in the comments below.