Saturday Night Live celebrated its 50th anniversary with a televised special last night. The three-hour production featured a slew of past and present cast members, as well as multiple celebrities, most of whom have connections with the show, having either hosted or been musical guests in the past.
Meryl is not one of those people. Despite regular suggestions/pleas from the public, she's never hosted the show, and certainly hasn't been the musical guest. Last night, however, she made her first appearance on the show in a reboot of the classic sketch "Close Encounter" (which happens to be one of my all-time favorites), where government officials interview people who have reportedly survived alien abductions. Kate McKinnon is sort of the lead in the sketch, portraying a...let's just say 'not sophisticated' woman who very colorfully describes her experiences with the abductions. Meryl joins Pedro Pascal and Woody Harrelson in the sketch (her part starts at 4:36).
I cracked up quite a few times, particularly when Meryl broke character a bit when delivering her last line. This cracked up McKinnon as well, which was fun to see. Meryl seemed to be channeling a bit of Violet Weston with her cigarette and southern drawl. There were also fun little side references to Into the Woods and The Devil Wears Prada, drawing applause from the audience. It was sweet to see McKinnon hug Meryl and give her a little peck on the cheek as they exited the stage. I wonder if McKinnon specifically reached out to Meryl to see if she wanted to participate. The two had worked together on McKinnon's 2019 Audible original podcast Heads Will Roll. I remember listening to it during lockdown and really enjoying it. Or maybe Meryl's "friend" Martin Short had a connection that ended up landing Streep on the SNL special. The two were seen together at a concert event for the 50th anniversary special a few days ago, where Meryl drew more laughs for flipping off Will Ferrell and Ana Gasteyer (in good humor in fitting with their bit).
Speaking of The Devil Wears Prada, we're now well into February without any additional news on whether or not a sequel is moving forward. Some earlier reports had suggested filming was to begin in February (still could I guess). Presumed cast members have been pretty cagey when asked about it in interviews in recent months. Stanley Tucci in particular said flat out that he didn't know if it was happening. But more recently he seemed to intimate that he knew more than he originally let on, saying to Variety last month, "I know they’re working on it. If it happens, I would be so happy, but I cannot give you any information. Otherwise, I’ll go to the actor’s prison or something."
Still plenty of time to get filming underway for a 2026 (20th anniversary of original) release date.
