The “Saturday Night Live” cold open took direct aim at the Internet obsession over Luigi Mangione, the alleged killer of United HealthCare CEO Brian Thompson, with a skit starring Sarah Sherman as true crime expert Nancy Grace.
“You psychos think he’s a sex symbol,” Sherman said as Grace told the audience as she delved into the shocking story of the brutal Manhattan murder of Thompson walking to an investor conference. With over-the-top tabloids, Grace noted that Mangione “finds women and gay men hot and bothered,” describing him as “Dave Franco with Eugene Levy’s eyebrows.”
Kenan Thompson later appeared in the sketch as a man on the street who happened to encounter the killer. Grace interviewed him at the McDonald’s where the alleged killer was caught and asked Thompson’s character, “Can you believe people were attracted to this sexy killer?”
To which Thompson replied, “Women love bad boys.” He also referred to the alleged anti-healthcare manifesto that Mangione is said to have written and made available online. “You used to be able to impress women with a little poem. Now you have to write a manifesto.”
The cold open also poked fun at the experience of watching a video on YouTube when there’s a jarring ad break mid-sentence. Sherman’s Grace warned viewers that if she did it again, she might be interrupted “by an insanely loud ad,” after which the scene naturally cut to “SNL” cast member Marcello Hernandez delivering a rapid-fire exercise machine pitch.
Grace’s other guest was played by Emil Wakim, a man who looks like Mangione. “I’ve gotten some of the hottest DMs in my life,” the Wakim character said.
The Cold Open is a staple of “SNL” and is often a vehicle for celebrity cameos. This past week, Dana Carvey’s Church Lady character returned to the Cold Open segment of “Saturday Night Live.”
Earlier this season, for the season 50 cold open premiere, Maya Rudolph portrayed Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris alongside James Austin Johnson as Donald Trump, Bowen Yang as JD Vance, Jim Gaffigan as Tim Walz, Andy Samberg as Doug Emhoff and Carvey as Joe . Biden.