Top 5 sketches from Saturday Night Live 50 'The Anniversary Special' event

Saturday Night Live celebrated its 50 years of maintaining cultural relevance with a star-studded event dubbed SNL50: The Anniversary Special.

The event was broadcast on Sunday, February 16, 2025, and featured a three-hour prime-time broadcast with numerous celebrities and familiar cast members in attendance, including Eddie Murphy, Will Ferrel, Kim Kardashian, Scarlett Johansson, Sabrina Carpenter, Meryl Streep, and Miley Cyrus.

Sabrina Carpenter and Paul Simon opened the show with their duet, Steve Martin delivered an epic monologue, and Paul McCartney brought the show to a close with a thrilling performance.

Apart from thrilling performances, the show was filled with numerous sketches that surprised the audience with unexpected returns, memorable debuts, and surprising cameos. This list will explore some of the best sketches from Saturday Night Live's 50th anniversary special.

Note: This list reflects the writer's opinion only and is arranged in no particular order.

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Close Encounters, Debbie Downer, and three other best sketches from Saturday Night Live 50 'The Anniversary Special' event

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1) New York 50th Musical

Several people guessed the return of the Dinner Lobster sketch, and they weren't wrong. What they didn't expect was a performance better than imagined. John Mulaney returned with a quirky New York City musical, which he performed together with stars like Scarlett Johansson and David Spade. The 10-minute sketch left the audience laughing and wanting more.

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2) Close Encounter 50th

The Close Encounter sketch drew a pleasant reaction from viewers as Meryl Streep made her first appearance in an SNL sketch. Kate McKinnon reprises her role as Miss Rafferty, while Meryl plays the role of her mother, also known as Miss Rafferty. As usual, they try their best to crack up the audience with crazy stories about Miss Rafferty's abduction by aliens, and this time, Meryl Streep's innuendos made it better. Kate and Meryl acted in the sketch alongside Pascal, Woody Harrelson, Aidy Bryant, and Jon Hamm.

Read more: 7 best musical shorts of all time performed at Saturday Night Live

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3) Debbie Downer

Debbie Downer was that sketch everybody agreed they needed to see again, and Saturday Night Live 50 didn't disappoint. Rachel Dratch reprises the role of Ms. Downer, a bartender serving drinks to the likes of Robert De Niro, Drew Barrymore, Jimmy Fallon, and Ayo Adebiri while subjecting us to a show at Downernisms. Debbie Downer reminds us of her bird flu, impending rhino extinction, and dry eyes while adding a new gout problem to the mix.

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4) Domingo: Vow Renewal

This sketch is one of SNL's recent sketches. During Ariana Grande's time hosting the show, Domingo debuted last year and was met with positive reviews. The sketch returned, but this time with Sabrina Carpenter joining the messy mix. It can be recalled that Ariana gave a badly sung version of Espresso, and Sabrina returned the favor by singing a medley of Defying Gravity in the worst way possible together with her bridesmaids, played by Sarah Sherman, Ego Nwodim and Heidi Gardner. A new twist is given to the sketch with the addition of groomsmen, played by Kyle Mooney, Beck Bennett, Bowen Yang, and Andy Samberg.

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5) Lawrence Welk

The Lawrence Welk sketch gave us some of the best lines of SNL50.

"Oh my god. Did they put LSD in my Caesar salad, or do I see three beautiful ladies hitchhiking my way?" is one line we will be quoting for a while.

Will Ferrell played the role of Robert Goulet and Fred Armisen as Lawrence Welk. They were joined by Kristen Wiig's Dooneese and featured guest appearances from Scarlett Johansson, Kim Kardashian, and Ana Gasteya.

Read more: 7 best-dressed couples at the Saturday Night Live 50 “The Anniversary Special” event

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Other sketches from SNL50 include Amy Poehler and Tina Fey's Q&A, Chad in 8H, and Black Jeopardy 50th.