• Matt Damon reprised his Brett Kavanaugh impression on the May 9 SNL cold open — his first time back in the role since 2018
• The sketch featured Colin Jost as Pete Hegseth and Aziz Ansari as Kash Patel in a Washington bar setting
• Damon’s Kavanaugh revealed Trump can serve a third term because he found the original Constitution and wrote “Psych!” at the end
• The episode marked Damon’s third time hosting SNL; Noah Kahan served as musical guest
• SNL Season 51 wraps May 16 with Will Ferrell hosting and Paul McCartney as musical guest

Matt Damon dusted off the Supreme Court robes for the May 9 episode of Saturday Night Live, reprising his legendary Brett Kavanaugh impression in a cold open that immediately took over the internet. The sketch — set in a Washington, D.C. bar — delivered what might be the most elegantly absurd political joke of the season: Trump can serve a third term because he found the original Constitution and, at the very end, wrote “Psych!”

Damon’s Kavanaugh burst through the bar doors to find Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, played by Colin Jost, already drinking solo. Hegseth’s excuse? “None of Trump’s people like drinking as much as I do.” Kavanaugh’s entrance line set the tone immediately: he told Hegseth he knew he’d find him there because he “saw all the women covering their drinks.”

From there, the two launched into a bragging contest of controversial achievements. Jost’s Hegseth boasted that he “started a war.” Damon’s Kavanaugh countered that he “ended abortion” — punctuating it with a cheery “Your body, my choice!”

https://youtube.com/watch?v=7N68NjL9cMA%3Ffeature%3Doembed

A third drinking buddy eventually joined them: Aziz Ansari’s FBI Director Kash Patel, a character the Parks and Recreation actor debuted in the May 2 cold open. “Seriously, we’re all living the American dream,” Ansari’s Patel declared. “I’m the first person in my family to go to college — parties, many years after graduating.”

Then came the punchline. Kavanaugh leaned in to share a secret: “We’re going to let Trump do a third term.” When pressed on the small matter of it being unconstitutional, he explained that Trump “found the original Constitution, and at the end, he wrote, ‘Psych!'”

The sketch went viral almost instantly, and it’s not hard to see why. The joke works because the gap between the satire and the actual political moment feels uncomfortably thin. Above the Law noted it was “less ‘political satire’ and more ‘lightly fictionalized documentary'” — and that’s precisely the energy the cold open was going for.

A Character Eight Years in the Making

Damon first played Kavanaugh in 2018, during the Senate Judiciary Committee hearings on the justice’s nomination — a performance that became one of the most talked-about cold opens in recent SNL history. The image of Damon screaming about beer and calendars is practically burned into the collective memory of anyone who watched that era of the show. Eight years later, the character hasn’t lost a step.

This episode also marked Damon’s third time hosting SNL overall, and his first time back since that 2018 appearance. In his monologue, he tackled the awkward timing of plugging The Odyssey — Christopher Nolan’s upcoming film, which doesn’t open until July 17 — while the show goes on summer hiatus before then.

“I have a new movie coming out,” Damon told the audience. “It’s called ‘The Odyssey,’ and it is in theaters not this weekend, not next weekend, but nine weekends from now.”

He also addressed the missing Mother’s Day tradition. SNL typically flies the cast’s mothers in first class for the Mother’s Day weekend episode — but not this year. “Apparently, that was going to happen again this year, but then Spirit Airlines shut down,” Damon said. “So for all of you waiting to see the cast’s moms, I’m sorry, it ain’t happening tonight.” One exception: Marcello Hernandez’s mom made a cameo in the audience as part of a bit involving an unusually enthusiastic audience member.

It’s worth noting the cold open also continued a recent trend — for the second week running, James Austin Johnson’s Donald Trump didn’t appear. The show has been rotating its political roster, with Jost’s Hegseth and Ansari’s Patel increasingly anchoring the opening sketches.

What’s Next for SNL Season 51

Damon’s episode was the penultimate installment of Season 51. The season finale airs May 16, with Will Ferrell returning to host for a record sixth time — and Paul McCartney performing as musical guest. After that, the show heads into its summer break, with new episodes returning in the fall.

As for Damon’s Kavanaugh, the “Psych!” Constitution bit may be the character’s most quotable moment yet. The original 2018 sketch made him SNL canon. This one reminded everyone why.

The post Matt Damon’s Kavanaugh Promises a Trump Third Term on SNL appeared first on Cream.

• Matt Damon returned as Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh in SNL’s May 9 cold open — his first time in the role since 2018
• Colin Jost’s Pete Hegseth and Aziz Ansari’s Kash Patel joined Kavanaugh for a boozy night at Martin’s Tavern in Washington, D.C.
• The sketch ended with Kavanaugh dropping a “top secret” bombshell: Trump is getting a third term because he found the original Constitution and wrote “Sike!” at the bottom
• This was Damon’s third time hosting SNL — the penultimate episode of Season 51 — with musical guest Noah Kahan
• Season 51 wraps next week with Will Ferrell hosting and Paul McCartney as musical guest

Matt Damon dusted off his gavel and his beer gut for the May 9 episode of Saturday Night Live, reprising his iconic Brett Kavanaugh impression in a cold open that turned into the most unhinged MAGA boys’ night out television has ever seen.

The sketch opened at Martin’s Tavern — the legendary Georgetown watering hole — where Colin Jost’s Pete Hegseth arrived looking for a quiet drink away from the office. “It’s just nice to have my sneaky bar here, where I’m not going to run into anyone from work,” Jost’s Hegseth declared, “because none of Trump’s people like drinking as much as I do.”

He hadn’t even settled onto his barstool before Damon’s Kavanaugh came roaring in, robe and gavel in hand. “Wrong!” The justice immediately ordered what he called a “six-three decision” — six Bud Lights and three shots of Jameson — and Kenan Thompson’s bartender deadpanned, “Yep, a 6-3 decision coming right up.”

When Hegseth asked if Kavanaugh had accidentally included him in a Signal chat, the justice shook his head: “No, I just saw all the women covering their drinks.”

https://youtube.com/watch?v=7N68NjL9cMA%3Fsi%3Do3vV_-CVQe2Wm9Io

The Gang’s All Here

The two wasted no time catching up on their greatest hits. Jost’s Hegseth crowed, “Dude, can you believe I just, like, started a war?” Damon’s Kavanaugh shot back, “Can you believe I ended abortion? Your body, my choice!” When asked how the war in Iran was going, Hegseth offered: “Oh, it’s totally chill. It’s like me at a DWI checkpoint: completely blew over.”

Kavanaugh then pulled out what appeared to be a gerrymandered Tennessee voting district map — shaped suspiciously like a dinosaur — before correcting himself. “Oh, wait. Actually, no. That’s a field sobriety test. They told me to draw a circle.”

The real emotional gut-punch came when Kavanaugh confessed his deepest worry. Not the war. Not the courts. Male loneliness. “I used to have all my buddies to hang out with,” he lamented. “I just wish there were more people in this administration who could really hang.”

Right on cue, the doors swung open.

“Does this bar take Kash?!”

Aziz Ansari’s FBI Director Kash Patel — eyes bulging, energy unhinged — slid into the booth carrying personalized bourbon bottles engraved with his own name. “Somehow this is a real thing that I, the FBI director, have made,” Ansari’s Patel marveled. “This is real!” The bottles are, in fact, a real thing that exists.

Patel explained why he brings his own alcohol to bars: “Sometimes people think I’m a kid with a fake ID. They say, ‘Nobody would make this face in official photos.'” He then reflected on his journey. “We are all living the American dream. I’m the first person in my family to go to college — parties, many years after graduating.”

When Kavanaugh pressed him on rumors that he’s been ordering FBI staffers to take polygraph tests, Patel denied it emphatically. “No, I told them to make a graph of everyone in the FBI who’s poly. My girlfriend wants to open up our relationship!” The trio exchanged frat-style high-fives. “She says she wants to bring other guys into the bedroom and for me to stay in the living room.”

The Top Secret Bombshell

Just when things couldn’t get more chaotic, Damon’s Kavanaugh leaned in conspiratorially. “Can I tell you guys a secret?” he asked. “We’re gonna let Trump do a third term.”

Hegseth and Patel lost their minds — until Hegseth caught himself. “I thought that was unconstitutional?”

“It was,” Kavanaugh replied, “until Trump found the original Constitution, and at the end, he wrote, ‘Sike!’ We’re going to live forever!”

The sketch closed with the trio — plus the rest of the bar — belting out Chumbawamba’s “Tubthumping,” with drink orders subbed in for the lyrics. It was the perfect ending for a sketch that leaned hard into the real-life fact that both Hegseth and Kavanaugh faced pointed questions about their drinking during their respective confirmation hearings.

A Solid Night for Damon Overall

The cold open was the highlight of what turned out to be a genuinely strong episode. Damon — hosting for the third time, his first since 2018 — threw himself into everything. He played himself in a pre-taped Mother’s Day sketch called “Mom: The Movie,” a film deliberately stripped of all conflict because, as the premise went, “Moms have enough stress. Why not let them feel good for a day?” In it, Ashley Padilla’s character is blissfully married to Matt Damon, and they met when he noticed her giant turquoise necklace. It streams on HomeGoods Plus.

In his monologue, Damon addressed the elephant in the room: he’s hosting SNL nine weeks before his summer blockbuster The Odyssey opens on July 17, because the show will be on hiatus by then. He also explained why the beloved Mother’s Day tradition — flying cast members’ moms in for the show — wasn’t happening this year: Spirit Airlines shut down. The one exception was Marcello Hernández’s mom, who made it to the audience and got her own little moment.

The standout non-cold-open sketch of the night was a late-show bit pairing Damon with Sarah Sherman as two auctioneers having a marriage-ending fight — auctioneering their way through infidelity, their sex life, and eventual divorce terms in front of four young sons (played by adult cast members holding numbered signs). It was a genuinely bold piece of live comedy, and Damon’s acting chops gave it real weight underneath the absurdity.

Weekend Update featured Marcello Hernández and Mikey Day as government-employed kamikaze dolphins, Jane Wickline in a musical rant about always being late, and Jeremy Culhane’s Tucker Carlson impression — which leaned hard into Carlson’s tendency to see everything through a very particular lens. Describing ASAP Rocky’s Met Gala pink robe, Culhane’s Carlson noted the performer was “wearing my least favorite color… African-American.”

Musical guest Noah Kahan performed “The Great Divide” and “Doors.”

Next Saturday, Season 51 wraps with Will Ferrell returning for his sixth time hosting, alongside musical guest Paul McCartney. After that, SNL heads into its summer hiatus. Damon’s Kavanaugh, one assumes, will keep ordering 6-3 decisions until the show needs him again.

The post Matt Damon’s Kavanaugh Is Back and SNL’s Bar Tab Is Huge appeared first on Cream.

• Matt Damon hosted Saturday Night Live for the third time, with musical guest Noah Kahan.
• Damon reprised his Brett Kavanaugh impression in a bar-set cold open alongside Colin Jost’s Pete Hegseth and Aziz Ansari’s Kash Patel.
• A Mother’s Day fake movie trailer called Mom featured Damon as the world’s most ideal husband.
• The episode — the penultimate of Season 51 — aired ahead of the May 16 finale with Will Ferrell and Paul McCartney.
• Damon also promoted his upcoming role as Odysseus in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey during his monologue.

Matt Damon walked back into Studio 8H on Saturday night and made it look easy. Hosting Saturday Night Live for the third time in his career — following stints in 2002 and 2018 — the Cambridge native delivered one of the more cohesive episodes of Season 51, anchoring everything from a raucous political cold open to a pitch-perfect Mother’s Day fake movie trailer that will absolutely be texted to your mom tomorrow morning.

And yes, Brett Kavanaugh is back.

The Cold Open: Beers, Bourbon, and a Third Term

Damon first played Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh in September 2018, at the height of the judge’s contentious confirmation hearing, channeling simmering frat-boy outrage in a performance that’s still talked about. Saturday’s cold open brought a very different Kavanaugh — looser, cockier, and very much at home in a bar.

The scene was set at Martin’s Tavern, the legendary Georgetown watering hole, where Kavanaugh runs into Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, played once again by Colin Jost. Aziz Ansari — returning as Kash Patel following his debut last week — rounded out the trio, arriving with his own branded bourbon.

“Pistol Pete,” Damon’s Kavanaugh said. “I kind of figured I was going to find you here.”

“Oh, did I include you on a Signal chat by accident?” Jost’s Hegseth asked.

“No, I just saw all the women covering their drinks!”

Both characters, of course, faced questions about heavy drinking during their respective confirmation hearings — and the show leaned all the way into it. “Hey, can I just say that we are both kicking ass right now,” Damon’s Kavanaugh offered. “Dude, can you believe I just, like, started a war?” Jost’s Hegseth replied. Kavanaugh shot back: “Can you believe I ended abortion? Your body, my choice.”

“Order. I find in favor of six Bud Lights and three shots of Jame-O,” Damon declared at one point, playing judge from a barstool.

The kicker came when Kavanaugh leaned in to share “something top secret” with his new pals. “We’re gonna let Trump do a third term,” Damon said, sending Hegseth and Patel into screaming excitement. Kenan Thompson’s bartender called last call, and the whole bar — political figures included — broke into Chumbawamba’s “Tubthumping” to close it out.

It was the show’s best cold open in a while. The Jost/Damon/Ansari combination of repulsive frat-boy energy had a genuine comedic momentum to it, and Damon’s easy comfort in the role — especially the way he casually name-drops Kavanaugh’s famously alleged friend “Squee” — made it land.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=7N68NjL9cMA%3Fsi%3DJFsaTBbgW3-mdMak

The Monologue and a Very Busy Career

Damon kept his opening monologue short and warm, offering a “personal message” to moms ahead of Mother’s Day and mentioning his upcoming role as Odysseus in Christopher Nolan’s highly anticipated The Odyssey — a cast that also includes Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Zendaya, and Robert Pattinson. Not a bad résumé to casually drop on a Saturday night.

His hosting history on the show is a bit of a running joke at this point. Damon has made four additional cameo appearances on top of his three hosting gigs, and even joked about it during a 2024 appearance — when he was handed two “Five-Timers” jackets before the actual honoree, Kristen Wiig, got hers. In the promos for this week’s episode, cast member Ben Marshall pointed out that at his current pace, Damon would reach Five-Timer status sometime around 2052.

The pre-show promos also leaned hard into Good Will Hunting — the 1997 film Damon co-wrote and starred in, which earned him an Oscar. In one bit, Sarah Sherman and Jeremy Culhane were found staring at a chalkboard covered in comedy equations, trying to crack the formula for the perfect SNL sketch. Damon recognized the bit immediately. “That movie is like 30 years old,” he said. Neither Sherman nor Culhane had seen it — Sherman because she just hadn’t, Culhane because he grew up in a cult.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=CA3VtWgnGtw%3Ffeature%3Doembed

Mom: The Movie Your Mother Actually Wants

The highlight of the night for many viewers will almost certainly be Mom — a fake movie trailer timed perfectly to Mother’s Day that is, as its own voiceover declares, “completely devoid of conflict, suspense and dramatic tension.”

The premise: an empty-nester mom (Ashley Padilla) is visited by her three adult children, who have the best possible announcement. They’re all moving back in. She is thrilled. The house is clean. The kids are home.

And the husband is, straight up, Matt Damon.

“I just love being married to you, Matt Damon,” mom says.

“I feel the same way, Rhonda. Rhonda Damon,” he replies. “You want to go upstairs?”

“To make love?” she asks.

“No — to do a fashion show with everything in your closet!”

She lights up. The audience loses it.

The sketch keeps going from there, each beat more specifically calibrated to mom-brain wish fulfillment. When a daughter panics that her baby shower and a big pickleball tournament are on the same day, mom checks the calendar and reports, completely unbothered: “They’re on different days.” In another scene, her kids need their birth certificates. She has them all. And when someone named Judith — the same Judith who once called mom’s porch pillows ugly — turns out to be sick, mom smiles and moves on without a second thought.

“And rest assured,” the voiceover adds, “if something bad happens, it will be to someone you don’t like.”

Mom, an “Isn’t This Nice?” production, hits theaters Sunday.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=u8q1H3H6SOQ%3Fsi%3DUz7xBeXFCEJe9JRe

The Rest of the Night

Beyond the cold open and the trailer, Damon spent the episode doing exactly what the show needed: playing middle-aged doofy everymen with the kind of ease that reminded you why Will Ferrell’s era worked so well. A sketch about tough guys recounting increasingly elaborate ways they’d been beaten up felt like it could have been written in 1993. An auctioneer sketch with Sarah Sherman had the energy of an early Dan Aykroyd bit. A fake Tidy Care Kitty Litter ad — in which Damon’s character slowly comes to believe his son has been urinating in the cat’s litter box — landed firmly in the show’s more recent absurdist mode.

As a whole, the episode had a surprising coherence to it. Damon’s persona — the boyish bro who grew into a dependable dad-fave — gave the night a through-line that made even the looser sketches feel intentional. It was a good night to be in the audience.

Musical guest Noah Kahan, a fellow New Englander, performed as well. Next Saturday brings the Season 51 finale, with Will Ferrell returning as host and Paul McCartney as musical guest.

The post Matt Damon’s SNL Return: Kavanaugh, Mom & More appeared first on Cream.