Beavis and Butt-Head, Sen. Katie Britt and the Roman Empire: The 11 best ‘Saturday Night Live’ sketches of Season 49

By Alli Rosenbloom, CNN

(CNN) — “Saturday Night Live” is set to air its Season 49 finale episode this weekend with the help of host Jake Gyllenhaal and musical guest Sabrina Carpenter, but we’d be remiss if we said goodbye without honoring some of this year’s standout sketches.

It was an exciting season full of star-studded cameos (hello Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce), instantly classic sketches and snarky political impersonations. Emma Stone and Kristen Wiig became the latest five-timers club inductees and an iconic spoof of two Comedy Central cartoon characters had us all laughing our faces off. Take a look at our best selects:

“Beavis and Butt-Head”

Even “SNL” veteran Heidi Gardner couldn’t stop herself from laughing at Mikey Day and host Ryan Gosling’s physical transformation into ‘90s cartoon icons Beavis and Butt-Head in an instantly classic sketch in April. Clips of Gardner breaking character immediately went viral, and Day and Gosling continued to ride the wave when they later appeared at Gosling’s “The Fall Guy” movie premiere in their Beavis and Butt-Head getups.

“I’m Just Pete”

“SNL” alum Pete Davidson kicked off Season 49 as host in October, and appeared in a hilarious sketch spoofing the Oscar-nominated “Barbie” song “I’m Just Ken” with his own rendition titled “I’m Just Pete.” Davidson sang, “I’m just Pete, my dating life is not discreet,” while cast members performed the song’s choreography with the utmost “Kenergy.”

“Protective Mom 2”

Pedro Pascal made a surprise cameo in an October sketch alongside host and musical guest Bad Bunny, playing cast member Marcello Hernandez’s judgmental Spanish-speaking mom who trash-talks his White girlfriend (Chloe Troast) through a comical half-English-half-Spanish conversation. Pascal, wearing a wig and pink outfit, eventually fawns over Troast when she insists Hernandez eat something – as moms love to do.

“Rome Song”

Jason Momoa hosted a November episode of “SNL” and rapped about the viral Roman Empire social media trend in a wild music video sketch. Suddenly appearing in a gladiator costume on a Roman colosseum-looking set and accompanied by backup dancers, Momoa rapped, “The Roman Empire, ancient Rome. Five times a day it pops into my dome.”

“ABBA Christmas”

Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph and Bowen Yang joined host Kate McKinnon in December to appear in an incredibly funny sketch framed as a retro paid TV advertisement that spoofed a fictional Christmas album by Swedish pop supergroup group ABBA. The foursome performed classic ABBA songs with a holiday twist, including a song sung in the style of “Mamma Mia” where they poked fun at the group’s signature style of singing while “standing close facing different directions.” Watching everyone barely being able to hold it together makes this skit one for the books.

Caitlin Clark on “Weekend Update”

Freshly minted WNBA star Caitlin Clark made a surprise cameo in an April “Weekend Update” bit where she told a couple of shady jokes about anchor and comedian Michael Che – and then made him read some jokes that she wrote – proving that she can deliver both on the court and off. She capped off her appearance on a sentimental note when she thanked a number of WNBA legends who “kicked down the door so I could walk inside.”

“Earthquake and Eclipse” on “Weekend Update”

“SNL” cast members Kenan Thompson and Marcello Hernandez had us all shook, with laughter, when they personified the 2024 total solar eclipse and 4.8 magnitude earthquake that rocked the Northeast, respectively, in another ridiculously memorable “Weekend Update” bit in April.

“SOTU Cold Open” with Scarlett Johansson as Sen. Katie Britt

When Republican Sen. Katie Britt’s 2024 State of the Union rebuttal went viral, social media was buzzing about which star would impersonate the Alabama Senator on the then-upcoming episode of “SNL.” Marvel star (and Mrs. Colin Jost) Scarlett Johansson then made an iconic surprise cameo when she scored the job, hilariously satirizing Britt’s rebuttal in the March episode’s cold open with quips like, ”You see, I’m not just a mother. I’m a wife, a mother, and the craziest b—h in the Target parking lot.”

“Airplane Baby”

December host Adam Driver acting as a cranky baby named “little Eddie” on an airplane, with his adult-sized head appearing atop a baby’s body, was one of the most awkward and memorable sketches of this season. His mom (Sarah Sherman) paid no mind to his disruptive cries, messy spit-ups, shouts about missing “the womb” and attempt to put his whole baby fist in his mouth, despite how much his adult-like facial features and fully-developed speech were creeping out the other passengers.

“Hot Ones with Beyoncé 2”

Can you imagine Beyoncé actually sitting down to eat increasingly spicy hot wings on “Hot Ones,” the internet’s favorite hot wing interview show? Well, Mikey Day and Maya Rudolph gave it their best go when Rudolph reprised her classic impersonation of the “Texas Hold Em” singer in a “Hot Ones”-inspired sketch this month that saw Beyoncé’s assistant (Kenan Thompson) squirt cooling coco butter lotion into her mouth to help tame the heat.

“Bowen’s Straight”

Sydney Sweeney admits that she has an “itsy-bitsy crush” on “SNL” cast member Bowen Yang, who in real life identifies as LGBTQ+, in a comical pre-taped sketch from March that showed an alternate universe in which Yang is straight. “Oh yeah, I’m full hetero,” Yang tells Sweeney, before the pair are seen making out in a dressing room. The ridiculously funny sketch featured Yang being a total ladies man who blows off a very sad Sweeney in the end.

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