This Week’s ‘SNL’ Cold Open Takes on Alleged United Healthcare Shooter Luigi Mangione

Jake Farrington

15 December 2024 at 6:15 am·2-min read

Saturday Night Live is known for tackling the biggest headlines of the week with their signature satirical bite, and the question at the internet’s fingertips this week has been, “How will SNL handle the murder of United Healthcare CEO, Brian Thompson, and the arrest of the alleged shooter Luigi Mangione?” The answer? With kid gloves.

The sketch show wasted no time getting right to it, opening the show with a parody of Nancy Grace’s YouTube wannabe-news-show Crime Stories where Sarah Sherman offers up a truly inspired (if not kooky) caricature of the “just right for YouTube” TV journalist. Nancy is mystified by the internet’s obsession with the alleged shooter who she describes as “Dave Franco with Eugene Levy’s eyebrows.” Not missing an opportunity to make fun of Grace’s exaggerated pronunciation of almost every word, Sherman rants, “This man is not a sex icon, ok? This man is — and I cannot say this any clearer — a mourdourer [murderer].”

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This week’s cold open is full of comedy gold, like when Nancy goes through thirsty internet comments trying to decipher their meaning. “Am I reading this right?” she asks, “‘Luigi’s got that BDE?’ I hope BDE stands for 'Behavior Dat’s Evil.'” Sherman shines in this role and her performance through the entire episode solidifies her as one of the strongest cast members in SNL’s current roster. Still, one can’t help but feel that despite all of the legitimately funny jokes and fair callouts of the public’s sympathetic treatment of an alleged murderer, the show missed an opportunity to make any sort of real comment on the larger cultural conversation that has arisen in the aftermath of the shooting.

Midway through the sketch, Kenan Thompson appears as a man who was in the McDonald's at the time of Mangione’s arrest, prompting Sherman to ask him for his perspective on the United States healthcare system. “You know what my health insurance plan is called?” he asks her, “Hoping it goes away.” This line is as close as the cold open gets to offering any meaningful societal commentary, spending more time skewering incessant YouTube ads.

The scene wraps up with an appearance by a “guy who looks like Luigi” played by SNL newcomer Emil Wakim. Many speculated that the actor would portray Mangione due to his striking resemblance, and while he doesn’t play the suspect outright, he does offer a comedic look into the life of a look-alike. “On one hand I keep getting tackled by bounty hunters, but on the other hand, I’ve gotten some of the horniest DMs of my life.” Overall the scene was big on jokes (which is great for a comedy show) but lacking in relevant observation (which is tough for satire).

You can watch the entire cold open here: