Kim Kardashian’s ‘SNL50’ Appearance Is Angering Comedy Fans

Sunday’s Saturday Night Live 50th anniversary special was a big night for people who like to watch major pop culture events and shout the names of celebrities who appear on their screen. “Ah! Look! It’s Meryl Streep. I just saw Jerry Seinfeld. Is that Al Sharpton???”

The shrieks were less excited, it seems, when the recitation of legendary names—Eddie Murphy! Judd Apatow! Dave Letterman!—included, thanks to the first sketch of the night, Kim Kardashian.

Kardashian played one of the sisters in the iconic Lawrence Welk Show sketch, where a handsome man—in this case, Will Ferrell’s impression of Robert Goulet—flirts with sisters from the Finger Lakes. The joke is that the sisters are all pretty and sing beautifully, except for their rogue sibling, Dooneese, played by Kristen Wiig with prop tiny hands.

For the SNL50 special, the normal-handed sisters were played by Ana Gasteyer, Scarlett Johansson, and, what seems to be controversially, Kim Kardashian.

The sketch, from my own eyes, seemed to go off perfectly fine. Kardashian coyly sang to the camera just as well as anyone in the innocuous part could have. Was the joke where Wiig’s tiny hands played her bum like a bongo drum a bit lazy? Sure, but Kardashian, to her credit, was game, and earned whatever cheap laughs came.

Fans who watched SNL50, however, seem to be annoyed that the reality star took up real estate in a show that was otherwise reserved for comedy legends.

“Out of 50 years of casts, hosts and skits on Saturday Night Live SNL - Kristin Wiig playing Kim Kardashian’s butt on the Lawrence Welk show again was the best the writers could come up with to lead #SNL50 ?!” one X user posted.

A lot of viewers seemed to be jarred by her appearance in the first proper sketch of the night.

While giving Kardashian such a prime, early-in-the-night spot might be questionable, what viewers seem to be forgetting is that Kardashian was actually one of the best hosts of her season. And maybe of the last few years.

Audiences were shocked by how self-effacing and sharp her monologue was when she hosted in 2021. Oscar-winning actors are rarely as funny as she was.

To wit, on the SNL50 red carpet, Chris Rock, who was pulled into an interview with Kardashian, called her “one of the great SNL hosts of our time.” The thing is: I don’t think he was being sarcastic. Both Kardashian and interviewer Leslie Jones stared into the camera: “Did you hear that?!” And it’s earned. Kardashian’s hosting stint was a comedy tour de force, specifically because she leaned into public opinion about her and her talent.

It’s fitting, then—though I’m sure not ideal, for her camp—that her appearance alongside so many comedy legends rankled so many SNL50 viewers. If I was producing the hours-long SNL tribute, I probably would’ve put the sketch later in the show, so Kardashian’s appearance wouldn’t be a talking point.

But, like Taylor Swift, I’ve learned to never question Lorne Michaels.