SNL

"Saturday Night Live" came back with a flurry Saturday night, with a strong measure of social justice ... calling out Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, playing audio saying he's no different than "the sellout negroes that sold our people into slavery."

Megan was performing her song, "Savage," when suddenly you hear the sounds of gunshots. She stops singing and says ... “We need to protect our Black women and love our Black women, because at the end of the day we need our Black women,” Megan goes on ... “We need to protect our Black men and stand up for our Black men, because at the end of the day, we’re tired of seeing hashtags of our Black men."

The cold open was hysterical ... lampooning Tuesday's debate with Jim Carrey as Biden and, of course, Alec Baldwin as the Prez. Beck Bennett had the unenviable task of playing moderator Chris Wallace. He had a funny/ominous line ... "Just to ensure this is the worst presidential debate in history, I'd like to close with white supremacy."

The most hilarious part of the open ... Maya Rudolph as Kamala Harris, who made it clear, there's an endgame to all of this.

The season 46 premiere returned after a 4-month hiatus. There was a small, masked studio audience -- those seats were filled by first responders.

The cast did not hold back telling jokes about the latest -- Trump's coronavirus diagnosis. Colin Jost and Michael Che yukked it up about the irony of it all, as Michael wished Trump a lengthy recovery.

Colin said there was a major scramble to address the developments over the last 72 hours ... “This news was a lot for us to process a day before we came back on the air after four months off,” Jost went on ... “It’s been very weird to see all these people who clearly hate Trump come out and say ‘We wish him well.’ I think a lot of them are just guilty that their first wish came true.”

Chris Rock hosted, and had a hilarious line ... “The elephant in the room, President Trump’s in the hospital from COVID. And, I just want to say, my heart goes out to COVID."

The "Saturday Night Live" cast and host, Chris Rock, are trying like hell to keep up with the constantly changing news about President Trump's COVID-19 diagnosis ahead of the season premiere.

Leading up to Saturday's Season 46 kickoff, the first Presidential debate was the big story we all expected to see lampooned, but that all changed early Friday morning with the President and First Lady testing positive.

Sources close to the situation tell TMZ ... writers and producers are now trying to figure out how to address the topic, and what adjustments, if any, have to be made the cold open or Rock's opening monologue.

We're told it's a very fluid situation, but 'SNL' wants to be sensitive ... and our sources say meetings and discussions were going on late into Friday night.

The good news -- for 'SNL' cast and crew anyway -- is we're told production and the writing staff isn't making drastic changes to what they had planned. Of course, you can expect to see the President's health addressed during the "Weekend Update" segment.

Our sources say the episode still won't shy away from the debate or campaign battles. Aside from Rock hosting, the premiere's heavily anticipated because Jim Carrey is taking on the role of Joe Biden, while Maya Rudolph returns as Kamala Harris.

If that wasn't enough for ya ... Megan Thee Stallion is the musical guest.

Jim Carrey is going toe-to-toe with Alec Baldwin on "Saturday Night Live" -- because he'll be the show's new Joe Biden heading into the election.

Showrunner and EP Lorne Michaels made the announcement Wednesday ... also sharing that Alec will return as President Trump, and so would Maya Rudolph, who played a hilarious version of Kamala Harris last time around.

But, on Biden -- who's been portrayed by Woody Harrelson and Jason Sudeikis of late -- Lorne told Vulture they were probably gonna give Jim a shot ... with conditions, it seems.

He says, "There was some interest on his part. And, then we responded, obviously, positively." He adds there were caveats, explaining ... "But, it came down to discussions about what the take was. He and Colin Jost had a bunch of talks. He and I as well. He will give the part energy and strength, and … [Laughs.] Hopefully it’s funny."

Oh, it's gotta be.

It's interesting that Lorne wanted to feel out how Jim would go about portraying the former Veep. The last time 'SNL' spoofed him ... they often made Biden out to be rambling, kooky and kinda creepy with his touchy-feely-ness.

Ya gotta wonder what the take will be now ... with the new backdrops of the coronavirus pandemic and Biden being the Democratic nominee.

"Saturday Night Live" will soon be back for season 46 -- just in time for the craziest election season ever -- but things will be different.

Multiple production sources tell TMZ ... the "live from New York" aspect of the show will be true for the first time since March 7, but don't expect a live audience. We're told that's not going to happen, at least not for a while.

Next, our sources say 'SNL' is scouting big spaces around NYC, along with warehouses in Brooklyn and Jersey, to shoot some of the pre-taped sketches. We're told they're looking for a place that allows for proper social distancing and safety for the cast and crew that Studio 8H at Rockefeller Center can't quite provide.

Finally, our sources say Zoom may still have to be utilized for celebrity guests ... much like it was in the 3 spring shows with stars like Tom Hanks and Brad Pitt.

The iconic sketch comedy show revealed its highly anticipated return October 3. We're told a small production crew will be at 30 Rock next week to prepare.

It's unclear how the cast will manage rehearsing at the studio -- or who the cast will include for that matter -- but it should be fun to find out.

David Ruprecht wants in on the new "Supermarket Sweep" fun, but with a different J-O-B -- the former host says he's is in the running to be the announcer.

David, who hosted 'Sweep' from 1990 to 1995 and again from 2000 to 2003, tells TMZ ... he auditioned with honchos at ABC for an announcing position and says he's still on the short list for the role.

If ya hadn't heard, the new host is former 'SNL' star Leslie Jones -- but David says he'd love to carry on the classic game show's legacy by putting on a new hat for the reboot. He even gave us his announcing pitch.

It sounds like he's in game shape ... ready to share play-by-play of shoppers running around grocery stores throwing hams and turkeys into their carts.

While David hosted the show for almost 10 years, he doubts his wealth of experience will help Leslie. While she hasn't reached out to him for hosting tips, he knows she doesn't need it because she's already a pro.

Former "SNL" cast member Jay Pharoah was jogging down a San Fernando Valley street, when multiple LAPD cops pulled their guns on him, ordered him spreadeagled on the ground and one officer then put his knee on Jay's neck ... Jay says all because he matched a vague description of a black suspect wearing gray.

Jay posted the video Friday night and said the incident went down approximately one week before Ahmaud Arbery's murder. He says he was getting exercise, wearing noise-canceling headphones, when he saw the cops approach. He thought whoever they were after was in big trouble ... and then it dawned on him -- they were after him.

The cops told Jay he fit the description of a suspect -- black male wearing gray sweatpants and a gray shirt.

You see the security footage in Jay's video, and it matches his narration. You see a cop approach Jay from behind, with gun pointed. Another officer arrives with his gun in the air, and a patrol car rolls up and one of the 2 cops exits with his gun drawn.

Jay was cuffed, and with a knee to the neck, he urgently tried explaining he was not the guy they were looking for. He told the cops to look him up on Google, adding, "You will see that you made a big mistake." He says the cops released him "a minute later."

Jay says he's gone public with his story because he could have been Ahmaud Arbery or George Floyd, and "I'm still here to tell my story."

Jay ended by saying his parents tried to shield him from racism, but now he says as black men, "we have the knowledge and we have the power to overthrow," adding, "I'm Jay Pharoah, and I'm a black man in America and my life matters. Black lives always matter."

Jamie Foxx wants everyone to leave Jimmy Fallon alone for wearing blackface 20 years ago, and says his buddy has NO reason to apologize.

Jamie came to the 'Tonight Show' host's defense with a series of comments on Jimmy's IG post where he did actually say he was sorry for his 'SNL' impression of Chris Rock.

Jamie said Jimmy "ain't got to apologize for s**t" and called him a great comedian who did an incredible impersonation.

But, what's interesting is ... Jamie says what Jimmy did is NOT blackface. As we reported ... Jimmy did a mea culpa Tuesday after the clip from the year 2000 resurfaced on social media with the hashtag, #jimmyfallonisoverparty.

Jimmy said, "I made a terrible decision to do an impersonation of Chris Rock while in blackface. There is no excuse for this." He added, "I am very sorry for making this unquestionably offensive decision and thank all of you for holding me accountable."

But, for anyone trying to cancel Jimmy ... Jamie's NOT having it. He went on to say in defense of his bud, "Some of y’all didn’t even see the sketch… relax and laugh! it's Other muuuuuuphuckas out there that really don’t care bout ya… use that energy for them!!! But leave my mans alone."

It took 20 years, but Jimmy Fallon's impersonation of Chris Rock on "Saturday Night Live" -- which he did in blackface -- has come back to bite him.

It seems unbelievable, but much like Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau last year, Fallon's late to learn the lesson that doing blackface at any point in your past is something that won't stay secret.

After the 'SNL' clip from the year 2000 resurfaced early Tuesday, the hashtag #jimmyfallonisoverparty began trending on Twitter ... and now, the late-night talk show host is apologizing.

Fallon says, "I made a terrible decision to do an impersonation of Chris Rock while in blackface. There is no excuse for this."

He adds ... "I am very sorry for making this unquestionably offensive decision and thank all of you for holding me accountable."

In the sketch -- which we repeat, aired on TV in 2000 -- Jimmy comes out in blackface dressed as the famous comedian to join Regis Philbin, played by Darrell Hammond, and crack some Chris Rock-esque jokes.

Hard to say if people found it funny back then ... but even Jimmy agrees it definitely was NOT worth it.

Of course, Fallon hosts 'The Tonight Show' on NBC, which many folks online were eager to point out is the same network that fired Megyn Kelly in 2018 for making controversial comments defending the use of blackface.

No word yet from NBC on if there will be any consequences for Jimmy.

The season 45 finale of 'SNL' was laugh-out-loud hysterical, thanks to one of the funniest Donald Trump skits ever.

Alec Baldwin reprised his faux-presidential role for the open of the show ... which began with a zoom graduation ceremony, where solicitations to the Obamas, murder hornets and others for keynote speaker were rejected ... but one person was happy to step in -- the Prez.

He provided "inspiration" to the grads by telling them there were many job opportunities available to them, like grocery store bouncer, camgirl, porch pirate ... you get the pic.

But then ... Trump was thirsty for more than compliments, and you gotta see what Baldwin does ... it's hilarious.

At the end of his speech, all but one graduate has fled zoom ... which then triggered "Trump" to say, "Wow, this crowd has thinned out faster than Adele."

It was brilliant ... Dr. Anthony Fauci said if someone ended up playing him on 'SNL' he'd be happy if it was Brad Pitt -- last night the good doc got his wish!!!

Brad was in top form ... nailing the gravely voice of the infectious disease honcho as he sat behind a desk, trying to reconcile the views of Dr. Fauci and Donald Trump.

But, first things first ... 'SNL' Fauci mused about the emails he's received from some of his older, female fans.

Then -- down to business. When Trump said a vaccine was coming "relatively soon," Tony explained the word "relatively" is, well, relative.

Then, the words, "Everyone can get a test," actually means virtually nobody can get tested.

As for ingesting disinfectant ... well, ya gotta watch Brad's facial expressions.

What makes Brad's appearance especially hilarious ... Dr. Fauci was on CNN and actually chose Brad Pitt to play him. Actually, he chose very reluctantly, and his choices were Ben Stiller or Pitt.

"Saturday Night Live" is figuring it out too -- how to keep the show going from home ... with self-shot skits, and the perfect host, too, in Tom Hanks.

The first celeb survivor of the coronavirus hosted the special 'SNL from Home' episode ... delivering a full monologue that did NOT use a laugh track (thankfully) but did pump in a little studio applause during his intro.

Right off the bat, Tom said the show wasn't live -- hence the multiple camera cuts during his monologue -- but was instead shot by the whole cast at home, and later edited.

Everyone was waiting to see who would play Dr. Anthony Fauci in a skit -- he had wisely opted for Brad Pitt -- but it didn't happen. Let's face it, they didn't have the services of hair and makeup to pull off those kinds of transformations.

Fauci did get a shoutout though during Kate McKinnon's hilarious skit about Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's home workout sessions. While pumping iron -- meaning AA batteries -- 'RBG' begged Fauci to slide into her DMs.

Other skits included Weekend Update with Colin Jost and Michael Che -- complete with the usual graphics -- and Alec Baldwin doing a Trump "on-the-phone" skit (again, no hair & makeup).

Pete Davidson did his version of a Drake's "Toosie Slide" music video, but the home tour was slightly less fabulous, and it was directed by Pete's mom. Remember, he lives with her in Staten Island ... even when NOT quarantined.

Pete Buttigieg still has big plans for his political future, but for now, he's down to chill out and catch up on sleep ... until he tries his hand as a late-night TV talk show host.

The ex-presidential candidate says his campaign was just the beginning for him, and even though he dropped out of the race he's still hoping to make himself useful down the line ... which we already know means backing Joe Biden to take on Donald Trump.

For now, though, Pete says he's enjoying the slower pace of life off the campaign trail and will be doing some R, R & R ... resting, recuperating and reflecting.

Buttigieg obviously can't relax for too long -- he's set to guest host Thursday on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and says he'd also love to pop in on "Saturday Night Live."

Elizabeth Warren looked herself in the mirror Saturday night ... actually, she was just looking at Kate McKinnon who was playing her on 'SNL,' and it was pretty funny.

The Massachusetts senator took the stage and first answered questions from Kate, who was playing FNC's Laura Ingraham, who debriefed Warren on her exit from the race and the endorsement everyone wants to hear.

Then, as Warren thanked her supporters -- various school teachers and teacher's pets -- Kate changed outfits and came out as EW.

Eddie Murphy made a crack on 'SNL' at Bill Cosby's expense -- and the incarcerated comedian didn't appreciate it one bit ... with his rep calling Ed a "Slave" to Tinseltown.

Cosby's rep, Andrew Wyatt, posted a scathing response Sunday to Eddie's joke -- and it's pretty brutal. Wyatt, speaking on behalf of Bill, writes ... "Mr. Cosby became the first Black to win an Emmy for his role in I Spy and Mr. Cosby broke color barriers in the Entertainment Industry, so that Blacks like Eddie Murphy, Dave Chappell, Kevin Hart and et al., could have an opportunity to showcase their talents for many generations to come."

He went on ... "It is sad that Mr. Murphy would take this glorious moment of returning to SNL and make disparaging remarks against Mr. Cosby," going on to add, "One would think that Mr. Murphy was given his freedom to leave the plantation, so that he could make his own decisions; but he decided to sell himself back to being a Hollywood Slave."

Wyatt continues by comparing Eddie to vaudevillian actor Stepin Fetchit, and said "cooning" equals the destruction of black men in Hollywood. Then ... he offered a truce of sorts.

The guy invites Eddie to meet with Bill in hopes of "having a meeting of the minds" to help the black community instead of tearing it down -- something BC apparently thinks Eddie is doing by taking shots at him on national television.

ICYMI, Eddie joked if you would've told him 30 years ago he'd be this stay-at-home dad like he is now with so many kids (10 of 'em) while the Cos himself was in jail ... he would've taken that bet. He then imitated Cosby's voice, calling himself "America's Dad."