Somehow, I didn’t think that Pete Davidson could top dressing up as Count Chocula and getting called out by Dave Chappelle this season, but he did it and it didn't even take him that long. This weekend, Saturday Night Live premiered "Stu," a short taking Eminem’s veteran hit “Stan” and turning it into a Christmas jingle. Oh, and he had a little help from Eminem himself.
This week’s viral Saturday Night Live moment comes straight from the North Pole, where Jason Bateman's Santa and a slew of elves are getting ready to wrap up Christmas gifts for all the nice boys and girls around the world. However, one elf gets a letter that’s a little weirder from a fan, Stu, who really, really wants a PS5 (so say we all). The letter starts out normally enough, but Stu starts sending letters that are more and more threatening as time goes on.
As someone super familiar with The Marshall Mathers LP, this sketch really plays for me, with Kate McKinnon even singing a Stu-themed version of the Dido part of the song. In addition, stick around to the end, because Eminem himself makes a cameo and throws a little shade at Stu a little after the rapper himself -- spoilers-- gets his own PS5 from Santa.
I have no idea how much mileage the average non-Eminem fan gets from the trajectory of the sketch, but I’d be willing to bet jokes about Assassins Creed Valhalla and how good Will Ferrell is in the movie Elf still played. I also totally lost it the moment Pete Davidson brought in, “I drank a fifth of eggnog, dare me to drive?,” a holiday-themed play on an original line from “Stan.” But perhaps the most unexpected bit is when Davidson’s Stu addresses the camera, introducing us to “Sir Elton John” (or rather Bowen Yang in costume).
Most of SNL’s most viral moments have come in the form of political sketches this season, but it’s nice to see the show take a break and do something so unusual that plays so well. The last time I can remember SNL being so funny with music was when SNL turned another holiday into a musical moment by bringing in Adele’s “Hello.”
This isn’t the first time “Stan” has ever been connected to SNL. While Eminem himself has never hosted the NBC late night sketch series, Eminem has performed on the show a few times. Back in 2000, he popped up with Dr. Dre to perform both “Stan” and “The Real Slim Shady” on the show. In addition, the last time Eminem was on Saturday Night Live was for a musical appearance in 2017 in which he was joined by Skylar Grey and also performed “Stan.” So the song has been a mainstay for the rapper for a long time.
Meanwhile, you can catch new episodes of Saturday Night Live weekly at 11:30 p.m. ET, only on NBC and keep tabs on who's hosting/the musical guest with CinemaBlend's full guide. Meanwhile, what did you think of the sketch? On point or too far over the line?
This poll is no longer available.
