• Will Ferrell hosts the SNL Season 51 finale tonight, May 16 — his sixth time in the hosting chair
• Paul McCartney returns as musical guest for the fifth time, nearly 46 years after his SNL debut on May 17, 1980
• McCartney is promoting his 21st solo album The Boys of Dungeon Lane, out May 29
• The promo clips have already gone viral, featuring dragon-slaying claims and a Despacito sing-along
• Watch live at 11:30 p.m. ET/8:30 p.m. PT on NBC, or stream free with a Peacock Premium trial

The Season 51 finale of Saturday Night Live doesn’t just have a legendary lineup — it has two of the most beloved returnees in the show’s history sharing a stage. Will Ferrell is back as host for the sixth time tonight, May 16, and Paul McCartney is stepping into Studio 8H as musical guest for the fifth time. If that wasn’t enough to get you to clear your Saturday night, the promo clips they shot together this week absolutely will.

Ferrell, who was a cast member from 1995 to 2002, is hosting to promote his upcoming Netflix comedy The Hawk. He most recently appeared on the show during the 50th anniversary special in February 2025 — the same night McCartney took the stage and performed “Golden Slumbers,” “Carry That Weight,” and “The End.” Tonight, they’re back together, and based on the promos, they haven’t lost a step.

The Promos Are Already a Highlight of the Season

In the new promo clips, Ferrell and current cast member Marcello Hernández join McCartney for what turns into one of the more absurd and charming bits the show has put out in years. Hernández asks McCartney what it’s like being a knight — Sir Paul was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1997 for his services to music — and McCartney, without missing a beat, casually mentions that he once slayed a dragon.

McCartney also gets in a callback to last week’s Matt Damon Mother’s Day monologue, quipping that he’s a big fan of Hernández’s mom. The whole thing wraps up with the three of them attempting — and we use that word generously — to sing the Justin Bieber remix of “Despacito.”

“Sir Paul, everyone’s wondering what songs you’re going to play on Saturday,” Hernández says in the clip. McCartney’s response? “I won’t tell.” So Ferrell proposes a guess, and on the count of three, he and Hernández shout in unison: “‘Despacito’ remix featuring Justin Bieber!”

McCartney’s reaction: “Damn, how’d you know?”

A separate host-only promo earlier in the week leaned into Ferrell’s SNL legacy, calling back to his beloved “Get Off The Shed” sketch from the ’90s — and featured a joke about McCartney that involved Ferrell hitting him with a belt. Classic.

A Night of Milestone Returns

For McCartney, tonight is genuinely historic. Saturday will mark almost exactly 46 years since his SNL debut on May 17, 1980. He’s also performed on both the 40th and 50th anniversary specials, making him one of the show’s most enduring musical presences. His 21st studio album The Boys of Dungeon Lane is due May 29, and he previewed a new track called “Salesman Saint” on The Rest Is History podcast earlier this week.

Ferrell, meanwhile, is a six-time host — a club that’s not easy to get into. His connection to the show runs deep, and his chemistry with the current cast has always been easy and electric. The season that began with Bad Bunny and Doja Cat is ending on a very different, very legendary note.

Saturday Night Live airs tonight at 11:30 p.m. ET/8:30 p.m. PT on NBC. If you don’t have cable, you can stream it live or catch it the next morning with a Peacock Premium free trial (seven days, then $16.99/month). DIRECTV is another option, with a five-day free trial starting at $84.99/month. Season 52 returns to NBC this fall.

The post Will Ferrell & Paul McCartney Unite for SNL Season 51 Finale appeared first on Cream.

• 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.