Posted in: NBC, Peacock, TV | Tagged: saturday night live, snl

SNL 50: Miranda, Johansson & More Join John Mulaney For Ode to NYC

SNL 50: Scarlett Johansson, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and many more joined John Mulaney for an all-star "tough love" musical NYC history lesson.

NBC's Saturday Night Live allowed John Mulaney to offer a historical love letter (warts and all) to New York City during SNL50: The Anniversary Special, a star-studded effort. After advising Pete Davidson and David Spade that "It's 1975 – New York is dying. It's a bankrupt hell hole," Davidson chooses to stay (though Spade will make a funny exit later): "We're poets and dreamers, and New York is where we belong. So, one hot dog with heroin, please!" From there, Hot Dog (Adam Driver) and Heroin (Maya Rudolph) offer their take on the song "Fame" to kick off a musical history lesson of all of the changes that NYC has gone through over the years.

And that's when things really took off – with Nathan Lane offering an ode to the '80s cocaine and booze era to the tune of "Hakuna Matata" (Mulaney: "I bet Disney's gonna be psyched!"). Over the course of a look at the '90s through today, we had Jason Sudeikis and Will Forte as mascots, Kristen Wiig as the green M&M (representing how "family-friendly" Times Square became), Kate McKinnon's Rudy Giuliani, Sarah Sherman's NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Devon Walker's NYC Mayot Eric Adams, and more. A personal favorite was Scarlett Johansson channeling Audrey from Little Shop of Horrors and dueting with Paul Rudd on "Suddenly eBikes" (to the tune of "Suddenly Seymour"), and Lin-Manuel Miranda returning for some "Hamilton" messaging.

And yet, just when it seems as if Davidson's NYC spirit is broken and he's ready to give up, Mulaney makes one last pitch: "Remember how this city inspired you just because the art scene and the music scene are dead and the city is a bunch of TD Banks and Le Pain Quotidiens. You can't just give up. I'm just asking you, nay, all of us here, to still believe in the power of New York and to give the city we love… One Day More" (yup, that brought out the entire cast for their version of "One Day More" from Les Misérables).

SNL is the most Emmy-winning show in history, with 101 wins (including awards for its specials and short-form series). It has been honored twice (1990 and 2009) with the prestigious George Foster Peabody Award and was inducted into the Broadcasting Hall of Fame. The show continues to garner the highest ratings and largest audience of any late-night television program, entertaining millions each week on linear and digital platforms.

Since its inception in 1975, SNL has launched the careers of many of the brightest comedy performers of their generation. SNL makes headlines with topical humor reflecting politics and current events, features an array of characters with a perspective on pop culture that remains unparalleled, and offers sharp political commentary through its signature "Weekend Update" segment. A variety show that is truly one of a kind, "SNL" also attracts the biggest stars of music to its stage for innovative viral performances.

NBC's Saturday Night Live Season 50 main cast and featured players include Sarah Sherman, Kenan Thompson, Michael Longfellow, Emil Wakim, Devon Walker, Chloe Fineman, Jane Wickline, Ashley Padilla, Andrew Dismukes, Michael Che, Colin Jost, Marcello Hernández, Heidi Gardner, Mikey Day, Ego Nwodim, Bowen Yang, and James Austin Johnson. The long-running late-night live sketch comedy and music series, which premiered Oct. 11, 1975, broadcasts live from NBC's famed Studio 8H in New York City's Rockefeller Center. Broadway Video, in association with SNL Studios, produces the program, which is executive-produced by Lorne Michaels.

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