Saturday Night Live returned to television screens on October 4, 2025, launching its 51st season with a cold open that wasted no time diving into the political and cultural tensions simmering in the late-night television world. The sketch, which aired on NBC and quickly became the talk of social media, tackled head-on the recent controversies swirling around government censorship, the Trump administration, and the precarious state of comedic free speech. The episode, hosted by Bad Bunny, marked a bold and unflinching start to the new season, signaling that SNL had no intentions of pulling its punches.
Colin Jost, stepping outside his usual "Weekend Update" desk, donned the persona of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. Jost’s Hegseth wasted no time in lampooning a real-life speech Hegseth had delivered earlier in the week, declaring, “Our military is gay as hell. Thanks to failed liberal policies, our army has never been gayer, and yet it’s also never been fatter. Make that make sense?” According to Variety, Jost’s character took the mockery further, instituting “frat party” rules for the military: “No fat chicks, and if you’re a fat dude, god damn it, you better be funny as hell!” The biting satire was unmistakable, poking fun at both the content and the tone of Hegseth’s actual public remarks.
But the sketch’s real fireworks began when James Austin Johnson, reprising his now-signature role as President Donald Trump, interrupted the proceedings. “I’m just here keeping my eye on ‘SNL’ making sure they don’t do anything too mean about me,” Johnson’s Trump declared, a line that drew both laughs and knowing nods from those aware of the mounting tension between late-night TV and the current administration. As reported by The Daily Beast, Trump warned the cast and audience alike: “SNL better be on their best behavior, otherwise they’ll have to answer to my attack dog at the FCC, Brandon Carr.”
The arrival of Mikey Day as FCC Chairman Brendan Carr—dancing onto the stage to the unmistakable beat of Rockwell’s “Somebody’s Watching Me”—was a comedic highlight. Day’s Carr attempted to correct the president on the mispronunciation of his name (“It’s Brendan, not Brandon”), only for Trump to retort, “It’s crazy you think I care.” The sketch ended with Johnson’s Trump addressing the camera directly: “Remember: Daddy’s watching!”—a line that’s already being quoted across the internet as a symbol of the current climate of surveillance and censorship.
This cold open did more than just lampoon the week’s headlines; it addressed the very real anxiety that’s gripped late-night television in recent months. In September, ABC temporarily suspended Jimmy Kimmel Live! after the comedian made controversial comments following the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. As reported by Variety and The Daily Beast, the move came after apparent pressure from FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, a Trump appointee. Although Kimmel’s show returned to air after public outcry, the incident left many in the industry—and among SNL’s fanbase—worried that the iconic sketch show might feel compelled to soften its critiques of Trump and his administration.
Those fears, it seems, were unfounded—at least for now. The SNL cold open not only referenced the Kimmel controversy but made it the centerpiece of its satire. “We are facing the greatest threat to freedom and democracy the world has ever known,” Jost’s Hegseth intoned, before Johnson’s Trump interrupted: “Late-night TV!” The line, as Deadline noted, cut to the heart of the debate about comedy’s place in American democracy and the role of political power in shaping the boundaries of acceptable speech.
The sketch also didn’t shy away from poking fun at the recent exodus and influx of cast members. In a meta moment, Trump remarked, “SNL 51 off to a rough start: 17 new cast members and they got the ‘Update’ guy doing the open,” referencing the show’s well-publicized cast shake-ups over the summer. According to USA Today, five new comedians were added to the roster, while several long-time favorites departed, giving the premiere an air of transition and uncertainty.
Elsewhere in the episode, host Bad Bunny took the stage for the monologue, addressing the backlash to his upcoming Super Bowl halftime show appearance. “You might not know this, but I’m doing the Super Bowl halftime show,” he said with a grin. “I’m very happy, and I think everyone is happy about it. Even Fox News.” The line, as reported by Variety, was followed by a montage humorously edited to make it sound as if Fox News hosts were singing his praises—a sly nod to the unpredictable alliances and culture wars of the moment.
The cold open also took jabs at comedians who performed at the Riyadh Comedy Festival in Saudi Arabia, with Trump joking, “I thought he’d be with his friends at the Riyadh Comedy Festival,” to which Jost’s Hegseth replied, “I didn’t get an offer.” The segment even included a reference to Trump’s infamous letter to Jeffrey Epstein, with Johnson’s Trump telling Jost, “Colin, may every day be another wonderful secret. That was a quote from a poem I wrote to a horrible man I’ve never met before!”
Beyond the jokes, the sketch was laced with anxiety about the future of late-night comedy. The cancellation of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert earlier in the summer and the Kimmel controversy have left many wondering whether SNL and its peers can continue to serve as platforms for political satire without facing government retribution. As The Daily Beast observed, the cold open seemed designed to reassure viewers that SNL would not be cowed. Johnson’s Trump, in a moment of self-deprecating humor, joked about his own health and the rumors swirling around his age: “Well, I had a great summer. Took a little vacation time for golf and travel and stroke. Kidding. Or not. Either way, you’ll never know.”
As the show closed out its opening sketch, the message was clear: SNL, for all its changes and challenges, remains committed to its role as a comedic watchdog and cultural commentator. Whether that stance will provoke further government scrutiny or embolden other late-night hosts to follow suit remains to be seen. But as Johnson’s Trump reminded viewers—both jokingly and ominously—“Daddy’s watching!”
With a premiere that managed to be both hilarious and pointedly political, Saturday Night Live has set the tone for a season that promises to be as unpredictable as the times themselves.
