As the latest iteration of Stephen King’s The Running Man, which stars Glen Powell, will soon be playing on the 2025 movie calendar, the A-lister’s returned to the spotlight. Powell's next big stop is Studio 8H as Saturday Night Live Season 51's next host! It seems that he’s excited for it based on his iconic choreographed teaser he did to promote his episode for the NBC staple. The best part–to me is that the musical number homages a Christopher Walken one.
After leaving the extreme Running Man set conditions behind, Powell’s SNL promo showcases a much lighter side of the star. His teaser, though, pays tribute to one of the best celebs featured in top sketches, Christopher Walken. But as you’ll see, there’s no cowbell to be found, just a 37-year-old dancing throughout the set, leading up to the stage door. Check it out below:
As you can see, it fits Powell’s fun and goofy MO pretty perfectly, but the nod to Walken puts it over the edge over here. It certainly pulled off the job they were hoping for since I’ll be tuning in this weekend. What I loved most of all was the gag of the tumble gone awry and two returning cast members of Season 51, Sarah Sherman and Andrew Dismukes, watching their host get totted away.
But back to the Christopher Walken part. If you aren’t familiar with the bit’s reference, the “Weapons of Choice” video features the Hollywood vet dancing from start to finish. Although this promo uses a different song, I quickly realized he was immediately going all in on the Fatboy Slim video reference, which he delivered on. Take a look at how even the beginning frames and outfits mirror the classic:
Personally, I’d love to know what the OG dancer thinks of the modern day highlighter’s rendition. For me, I think those moves are so good it could elicit a musical getting added onto Powell's ever-growing resume. Though who knows if that would pan out since he already has five projects lined up (I’m hoping this random fan’s idea will get the traction).
As mentioned, Glen Powell's latest title, The Running Man, is on its way. Unsurprisingly, the first reactions of the modern Stephen King adaptation praise the Hit Man star’s performance. His presence has exponentially grown over the past couple of years, including his Mrs. Doubtfire-esque Chad Powers, which premiered earlier this year on the 2025 TV schedule.
So all of this to say, if Glen Powell is already taking on Christopher Walken references, Saturday night can’t come soon enough! You can catch his episode live on the eponymous night, November 15, at 11:30 pm EST on NBC. Alternatively, it’ll be available to stream the following day via a Peacock subscription.
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