Saturday Night Live has never shied away from controversy. Join us as we explore the most jaw-dropping, cringe-worthy, and downright shocking moments that left audiences stunned and the internet buzzing with heated discussions.
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00:00Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most controversial
00:11moments on Saturday Night Live that left the public buzzing, but not exactly out of admiration.
00:23Number 10. Jesus Visits Tim Tebow & The Denver Broncos
00:31Portraying religious figures on a comedy show is always touchy, but SNL has never been one
00:36to shy away from such controversy. In this Season 37 sketch, they took aim at former
00:42NFL player Tim Tebow, who was known for openly expressing his Christian faith. Jason Sudeikis
00:48plays Jesus Christ visiting the Denver Broncos, and admitting that he has indeed been helping
00:54them win games, but only in the fourth quarter. He also jokes about praying to kicker Matt
01:13Prater, and advises Tebow to dial down his overt enthusiasm for Jesus. While Tebow kept
01:28quiet on the matter, not everyone turned the other cheek. Televangelist Pat Robertson slammed
01:34the sketch as quote, anti-Christian bigotry, while Fox News analyst Bob Beckel called it
01:40quote, despicable.
01:56Number 9. Rosetta Stone
02:03At first, this parody of the language learning software Rosetta Stone seems like an innocent
02:08run-of-the-mill commercial. A group of satisfied users enthusiastically share their experiences
02:13learning new languages. But things take a hilariously dark turn when it gets to the
02:18men using the Thai version of the software. It quickly becomes clear that they are only
02:28learning the language for a very specific and creepy reason. While the humor might land
02:38for some, not everyone was laughing, as it seemed to imply that the country's primary
02:42attraction was sex trade. The sketch went so far that it reached the culture minister
02:47of Thailand, who condemned it and called for the clip to be removed from YouTube.
03:06Number 8. F.E.A.R.'s Live Performance
03:21In 1981, former SNL cast member John Belushi pushed for his favorite band F.E.A.R. to be
03:27a musical guest on the show. That decision led to one of the most infamous performances
03:32in SNL history. It was bad enough that one of the band's members blurted out, quote,
03:42it's great to be in New Jersey, while in New York, which elicited boos from the audience.
03:47But F.E.A.R. also bust in a crowd of rowdy fans, who quickly turned the stage into a
03:52chaotic mosh pit complete with stage diving and slam dancing. The audience was horrified.
03:59When one fan grabbed a mic and yelled expletives, the feed was swiftly cut to a pre-taped segment.
04:05Needless to say, F.E.A.R.'s SNL debut was also their last.
04:15Number 7. Canteen Boy and The Scoutmaster
04:24One of Adam Sandler's standout recurring characters on SNL was Canteen Boy, the dim-witted
04:2927-year-old boy scout. While the character made several prior appearances without much
04:43fanfare, one Season 19 sketch sparked significant controversy. Sandler was joined by Alec Baldwin,
04:50who plays an older Scoutmaster making sexual advances towards Canteen Boy. The Scoutmaster
04:56rips off his shirt, offers Canteen Boy wine, and insists they share a sleeping bag. Despite
05:04the character's established age, many viewers were disturbed by what they saw as inappropriate
05:09behavior with a minor. This led to several complaints being filed, and the Boy Scouts
05:15of America publicly denouncing the sketch. As a result, reruns of the episode now feature
05:21a disclaimer clarifying that Canteen Boy is, in fact, an adult.
05:30Number 6. Ashley Simpson's Lip Sync Fail
05:33Performing on SNL as the musical guest can either make or break your career. While stars
05:49like Adele have used the opportunity to gain a well-deserved boost, for others like Ashley
05:54Simpson, it marked the beginning of a downfall. In October 2004, early in her career, Simpson
06:01went on the show to perform pieces of me and autobiography. While the first song went off
06:06without a hitch, the second was disrupted when the pre-recorded track from the previous
06:10song began playing again, revealing she was lip syncing. Instead of trying to salvage
06:15the situation, Simpson did an awkward jig, shrugged, and walked off. The moment went
06:33instantly viral, sparking widespread mockery and backlash that Simpson's career never
06:38quite recovered from.
06:44Number 5. Jesus Uncrossed
06:57As mentioned earlier, SNL has never been afraid to push boundaries when it comes to religious
07:02parodies. In 2013, the show took a turn into unhinged territory with the Jesus Uncrossed
07:08sketch, which parodied the films of Quentin Tarantino. It featured a violent reimagining
07:23of Jesus Christ as a gun-wielding character who, in classic Tarantino fashion, seeks revenge
07:28on those who wronged him. The live audience was unbothered by the depiction, but once
07:33it went far and wide, many were unhappy with what they saw.
07:53Considering it mixed sacred imagery with explicit violence, several religious groups decried
07:58the sketch as unholy and accused the show of blasphemy. Despite the controversy around
08:04Jesus Uncrossed, SNL remained unfazed and left the sketch unaltered.
08:16Number 4. Racist Word Association Interview
08:20SNL was at its most experimental and provocative during its first season. Nothing showcased
08:26this more than its seventh episode, hosted by the legendary comedian Richard Pryor. In
08:31a now-iconic sketch opposite Chevy Chase, Pryor plays a job applicant who is subjected
08:36to a game of word association during his interview. What begins as a harmless exchange with words
08:52like dog and bean quickly escalates into a tense, racially-charged confrontation. It
09:06all boils over when Chase delivers a final slur, which prompts a thinly-veiled threat
09:11of violence from Pryor. It's a wonder this sketch even made it to air, but once it did,
09:16it drew attention to the nascent show and defined the kind of edgy comedy SNL would
09:21become known for.
09:27Number 3. Sinead O'Connor's Protest
09:37Many musicians have used their platform to spotlight issues close to their hearts. In
09:42October 1992, during her performance on SNL, singer-songwriter Sinead O'Connor took the
09:47opportunity to protest the Catholic Church's mishandling of sexual impropriety. While
09:52performing her second song of the night, an acapella version of Bob Marley's War, O'Connor
09:58held up a picture of Pope John Paul II and ripped it to pieces. Though her intentions
10:11were earnest, the backlash was swift and unforgiving. As everyone from regular viewers to fellow
10:17celebrities and church leaders condemned the act. As a result, O'Connor was banned
10:22from NBC and suffered severe setbacks. However, her reputation gradually changed as revelations
10:29about the church's scandals came to light.
10:39Number 2. Martin Lawrence's Opening Monologue
10:42SNL makes use of cue cards for a reason, to ensure that everyone sticks to the script.
10:53But when Martin Lawrence hosted the show in 1994, he only took the cards as a suggestion.
10:59Lawrence veered completely off-script during his monologue, delivering a bizarre tirade
11:03about women's hygiene and anatomy. Even as some audience members seemed to groan in
11:13discomfort, Lawrence forged on and even doubled down on his comments. The monologue sparked
11:19over 200 complaints from viewers and led to Lawrence getting temporarily banned from the
11:24network. Reruns of the episode now edit the monologue out completely, instead replacing
11:29it with a disclaimer about how the controversial bit jeopardized the jobs of everyone at SNL.
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12:06Number 1. Kanye West's Pro-Trump Rant
12:09It's no secret that handing Kanye West a microphone often leads to the unexpected.
12:24Before the season 44 premiere, West served as the musical guest and performed three songs,
12:30the third of which replaced the extended goodnight segment. In this final performance, West donned
12:36a Make America Great Again hat and surprised everyone with a speech expressing his love
12:41and support for Donald Trump. His remarks left the studio audience stunned, eliciting
12:53a mix of awkward laughter and booze. Although the segment wasn't broadcast, studio attendees
12:59recorded it and shared it online, where it quickly went viral. Unsurprisingly, West's
13:12rant divided opinions, drawing sharp criticism from some, while earning a thumbs up from
13:17Trump himself.
13:19Which of these controversial SNL moments did you watch live? Let us know in the comments.
13:31Do you agree with our picks? Check out this other recent clip from Ms. Mojo, and be sure
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