Top 20 Funniest SNL TV Show Parodies

Parodying: “Curb Your Enthusiasm” (2000-)
Bernie Sanders and Larry David might just be the same person, or at least, that’s what the internet wants to think. “Saturday Night Live” buys into this theory by casting David as the senator in a parody of “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” He has a few signature Larry moments, refusing to shake a supporter’s hand and not wanting to be bothered by other people’s problems. The combination of both personalities makes for an endless series of jokes about being a stubborn old man. Seeing Sanders’ life turned into an HBO show never fails to be funny, giving the writers enough material to create a believable episode of television.

Parodying: “The People’s Court” (1981-93, 1997-)
Fans of daytime television will love this parody of the long-running court show. Instead of taking a look at a normal case, the SNL version covers a ridiculous case between a hairdresser and the devil. The joke revolves around a comical deal that the former made with Mephistopheles. Several details, such as a contract written in blood and other surprises, make this even funnier, providing an accurate procedure that mirrors the real program. They even manage to capture the wild arguments that ensue between defendants and plaintiffs. Jon Lovitz’s pitch-perfect delivery and costume only make this even better.

Parodying: “The Sopranos” (1999-2007) & “The Carrie Diaries” (2013-14)
Inspired by “The Carrie Diaries” taking a look at a younger Carrie Bradshaw, SNL applies the same idea to “The Sopranos.” They put the characters in high school and have them deal with the fads and fashions of the 80s. Even though they’re teenagers, the cast haven’t lost any of their aggression or need to swear. The skit pokes fun at the timeline and the actual logic of the entire concept with fake critic reviews. Bobby Moynihan deserves specific praise for channeling James Gandolfini’s iconic starring performance as Tony Soprano. Fans also get to see the head mobster meet his future wife Carmela, in one of many enjoyable nods to the acclaimed HBO series.

Parodying: “Kenan & Kel” (1996-2000)
Kids of the 90s will appreciate this trip down memory lane. The Nickelodeon classic “Kenan & Kel” receives a reboot courtesy of an ecstatic Keke Palmer. The host wants to reinvision the plot with herself as a star, bringing in a reluctant Kenan Thompson to go along with her every request. Things take a turn as Palmer’s fandom gets in the way of producing a decent episode. Her bizarre catchphrases and plot ideas completely change the program’s tone in entertaining ways. With a cameo from Kel Mitchell himself, this parody is both accurate to the show and willing to make fun of its original glory.

Parodying: “MacGyver” (1985-92)
Will Forte’s dedicated performance makes this TV parody especially funny. Taking an over-dramatic look at “MacGyver,” the performer tries to defuse a bomb without getting too distracted. Every single episode revolves around the supposed expert falling prey to some other problem. Playing off of his trusty companions, the star is nowhere near effective as his 80s counterpart. Forte’s hilarious presence makes it all work with his complete inability to finish the job. Even though you know it’s coming, the ending explosion serves as the perfect punchline to every sketch. It was such a foolproof idea that it also inspired an uproarious movie.

Parodying: “Chopped” (2009-)
Anybody who watches the Food Network knows that “Chopped” is one of their mainstay shows. It’s also the breeding ground for tons of jokes about the format, the individual contestants, and the increasingly obscure dishes. Contestants Leslie Jones and Melissa Villaseñor compete in a heightened version of the program with some questionable ingredients. All the while, judges like Emma Thompson offer up a dramatic takedown of the laughable food. The sketch also has the two competitors turn violent with bullets flying across the kitchen. By the time it comes to a close, there’s even a live cat to bring the absurd concept home.

Parodying: “The Muppet Show” (1976-81)
For this parody of the beloved variety series, “Saturday Night Live” decides to spotlight two characters that usually interrupt the show. Statler and Waldorf are the two older puppets that criticize everything from the balcony, but they usually don’t receive any pushback. This sketch sees two security guards confront them several times before things get physical. Keegan-Michael Key beats one of them to a pulp, giving the foam-rubber critic two black eyes in the process. Both Key and Kenan Thompson can barely hold in their laughter as the ornery duo reel from the violence. It’s a shockingly hilarious turn that takes the classic program to its extreme.

Parodying: “Dateline NBC” (1992-)
While the subjects in this recurring parody sketch are deadly serious, the presentation is laugh-out-loud funny. Bill Hader plays a version of narrator Keith Morrison that seems a little too entertained by horrible details. His character often enjoys hearing victims’ families and friends recount their worst moments, even making odd sounds to show his excitement. Hader’s vocal inflections and awkward interview skills are just two highlights in this winning concept. He even finds time to commiserate with the perpetrators of said crimes, finding ways to push his hilarious reactions to the limit. It’s one of many examples of Hader’s incredible comedic instincts and impression skills.

Parodying: “The Office” (2001-03)
If you love the British version of “The Office” and J.R.R. Tolkien, you’re sure to love this sketch. The classic comedy series receives a pitch-perfect mashup with “The Hobbit” franchise. With “Office” star Martin Freeman reprising his role as Bilbo, the premise accurately depicts the grind of office culture. Bobby Moynihan’s David Brent feels especially inspired when combined with might wizard Gandalf. Other characters, like Gollum, populate the workplace, becoming targets for pranks and all sorts of nods to the acclaimed sitcom. There’s also a holiday party that takes a turn after Moynihan’s wizard starts to dance. From hilarious testimonials to great set design and character moments, this sketch has more than enough to satisfy fan of both franchises.

Parodying: “Behind the Music” (1997-2014, 2021-)
As iconic as this sketch is, some people forget that it’s a parody of the documentary series “Behind the Music.” This particular program follows Blue Öyster Cult during their recording of “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper.” Will Ferrell really plays the cowbell after some encouragement from producer Christopher Walken. Both performers bring total dedication and energy to this sketch, with Ferrell’s legendary moves almost derailing the sketch for being so outrageous. By the time Walken comes back with an iconic line, half the cast is already holding back laughter. It also stands as an incredibly funny look at the show that captures bands at their breaking point.

Parodying: “Game of Thrones” (2011-19)
There is no escaping the wild popularity that is HBO’s television adaptation of George R.R Martin’s book series ‘Game of Thrones’. Being one of the top intellectual properties in pop culture today, this of course opens the door to criticism…and in this case, zany ridicule. Poking fun at Jon Snow’s resurrection, SNL’s version of the scene begins to play out almost identically to how it does in the show, only this time… two others in attendance repeatedly interrupt the dramatic revival. Jon’s resurrection is meant to be an epic moment, so it’s incredibly hilarious for every dramatic high to be continually undercut by the two women - one of whom is played by host Brie Larson - just wanting to speed things up and get them over with.

Parodying: “Star Trek” (1966-69)
John Belushi takes command of the Enterprise as an even more eccentric and delirious Captain Kirk (if that was even possible) in this satirical crack at the original “Star Trek” series. Literally no element of the show is left without a gag, as phasers, beamers, evasive maneuvers and both Spock and Kirk’s quirky characteristics have a joke written around them. The most outlandish and hilarious part is near the end of the skit, when Kirk and his crew come into contact with Herb Goodman, head of the network. In an extremely meta situation, Kirk faces off against his greatest enemy…low ratings! Matters escalate quickly as we watch the set of the show shut down…all with Kirk/Shatner never returning to reality.

Parodying: “The View” (1997-)
While there are certainly a large number of fans of this extremely energetic daytime talk show, there are an equal number of detractors who feel it is nothing more than minutes on end of ear-ringing bickering. SNL recognizes this fact, pulling no punches whatsoever in taking playful jabs at each of the leading ladies on the program. Utilizing their excessive rants, feelings of authority towards each other and exaggerated factual claims to get their points across to great comedic effect, SNL really knocked it out of the park with this sketch. You know you did a parody right when even the members of “The View” themselves say that they enjoyed the satire of their tirades.

Parodying: “The Bachelor” franchise (2002-)
“The Bachelor” is a popular point of parody for SNL, as seen in their literal shot-for-shot mockery of the season finale from that year. Arguably the best stab taken at it was when SNL switched tuxedos for overalls in an exaggeration of the competitive lengths that the ladies will go to in order to capture the affection of a farmer heartthrob. The women, clearly having little clue what they’re talking about, ask him absurdly obvious questions. Even more hilarious are the statements that should obviously be turn-offs he makes, all while the ladies continue to stare at him with googly eyes; spoofing how agreeable the women on the actual show are and how much they “like that.”

Parodying: “Undercover Boss” (2010-)
“The Force Awakens” was crushing the box office a few years back, just like how Kylo Ren was crushing the universe with the might of his military. But, have you wondered what it takes to run a military like the First Order? SNL did and they tackled the thought with this offbeat combination of “Undercover Boss” and a galaxy, far, far away. Kylo, played by his real life actor Adam Driver, disguises himself as Matt to interact with his employees, which provides him with new insight as to how everything works on a day to day basis. It’s such a funny use of the reality TV show that we partly wish Star Wars would adopt the idea as a limited mini-series or some to that effect.

Parodying: “Family Feud” (1976-)
The long running American game show pitting two families against each other for an assortment of luxurious prizes has had its fair share of funny moments and awkward situations. Well, now how about we take that exact same premise and put it into a show whose entire purpose is to be funny? SNL’s take on the feud is to have celebrities take each other over a bevy of brain-bending questions. The catch is, the celebs on the show aren’t actually themselves, but rather other famous actors and comedians playing satirical versions of themselves, resulting in a wickedly funny recurring SNL skit. Family Feud isn’t the last game show SNL poked fun at but…we’ll get to that later.

Parodying: “The Walking Dead” (2010) & “Chappelle’s Show” (2003-06)
In the real episode of “The Walking Dead,” the sadistic villain Negan lines up many of the principal cast of characters and savagely kills many of them off one at a time. It was a shocking moment for fans of the series… so naturally SNL saw an opportunity to take a suspenseful moment and perform a 180-degree flip, turning it into completely and utter lunacy. The comedic chops of funny man Dave Chappelle, who in this case portrays Negan, makes a buffoonery out of the once tense sequence, with Rick’s gang being swapped out for characters that were once on Dave’s own show such as Tyrone Biggums and Clayton Bigsby. You’ll never see the original the same way.

Parodying: “The O.C.” (2003-07)
As if the original scene that aired during the season two finale of teen drama ‘The O.C’ wasn’t unintentionally hilarious enough; SNL cranks it up to eleven, making things more outrageous than ever. Utilizing the Imogen Heap song to drive the comedy forward, the entirety of the skit is essentially just repeating the same gag over and over again; but it works wonderfully. As the story unfolds, we are holding our sides with laughter, anticipating when the song will kick in and when the ludicrous amount of shooting occurs again. To top things all off is a brilliant ending that actually pokes fun at the SNL skit itself, satirizing how out of control the situation became.

Parodying: “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” (1968-2001)
The wicked wit of Eddie Murphy was on rapid fire in the height of his stand-up career and his appearances on SNL were no exception. The most notable skit he produced was arguably the obvious spoof of the popular children’s television show ‘Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood’. He portrayed his interpretation of the character with the same amount of cheer and friendliness as the original, as well as with a spicy amount of sarcastic and sly cracks at social commentary and racial issues. It functioned literally as a more mature take on Mr. Rogers, offering observations about the world around us, but with a far more blunt, mature perspective. Sometimes, the truth is darn funny.

Parodying: “Jeopardy!” (1964-)
This recurring sketch on SNL targets the long running brain puzzling game show “Jeopardy!” and with numerous versions of the scenario of the years, it’s hard to pick the absolute funniest. With several notable appearances of celebrities portraying other celebrities in a variety of outlandish skits, it’s tough to pick a favorite. For our money, Will Ferrell playing the host Alex Trebek in a hilarious conversation with comedian Darrell Hammond’s Sean Connery impersonation was one for the all-time comedy record books. This twist on the classic game show is definitely one of SNL’s best and that’s not even mentioning their ‘Black Jeopardy’ variant of the spoof.