‘SNL’ to tackle Trump in post-election pivot from cheerful Harris sketches

Live from New York, it’s bound to be a somber tenor from “Saturday Night Live” as the sketch comedy show prepares to take on a second Trump term after this week’s shocking presidential election results.
Following giddy pre-election shows, including an appearance by Democratic candidate Kamala Harris herself, it’s uncertain what note the liberal-leaning NBC hit will take when it returns for its first post-election episode.

Standup comedian Bill Burr will host, taking the reigns from similarly controversial comic Dave Chappelle, who hosted the last two post-election shows.
All eyes will be on Burr and how he chooses to tackle the opening monologue. Despite saying he considers himself a liberal, he hasn’t been shy about taking a swing at Democrats in the past.
When hosting “SNL” in 2020, just weeks before that year’s election, he slammed liberal white women for “hijack[ing] the woke movement,” which “was supposed to be about people of color not getting opportunities that they deserve.”
In the years since, he has continued to criticize both sides of the political aisle. Late last year, months before Biden dropped out of the presidential race in favor of VP Harris, Burr said he didn’t like the idea of either Trump or Biden again becoming the Commander in Chief.
“I want somebody in their 40s, somebody that’s going to have to live with their decisions,” Burr told Jimmy Kimmel. “With any luck, they’ll both die of natural causes before the election and maybe we can get somebody that still has something to live for.”
It’s unknown if “SNL” veteran Maya Rudolph will reprise her role as Harris this weekend. The “Bridesmaids” star, 52, cheerfully played Harris’ doppelgänger opposite the VP last weekend.

Back in 2016, Kate McKinnon notably traded in her good-humored take on Hillary Clinton to mourn the latter’s lost presidential bid with a forlorn performance of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.”
It’s unclear whether this Saturday’s cold open will strike a similarly grief-stricken tone.
With News Wire Services