‘SNL’ Cold Open Pokes Fun at Elon Musk’s Offer to Buy Twitter

Saturday Night Live’s cold open on April 16 touched on everything from Elon Musk trying to buy Twitter and Britney Spears announcing her pregnancy, to Coachella and bad reviews for Morbius.

Bowen Yang’s Easter Bunny kicked off the cold open against a pastel and garden-filled backdrop to mimic the Christian holiday.

“It’s really me, the Easter Bunny,” Yang said. “Either that, or you’re at Coachella and the ‘shrooms are kicking in.”

He continued, “Well, it is Easter, aka warm Halloween, and I may not be the most A-list holiday character, but yeah, I am the creepiest, man-sized bunny with no backstory. I’m not like Santa — I don’t use enslaved elves to make my Easter baskets. I get them on Etsy because I support women, and remember, the spirit of Easter is not about candy or eggs or even bunnies. It’s about renewal and rebirth. That’s why I’ve invited folks from all walks of life to share their hopes for this Easter season.”

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Yang then introduced Mikey Day’s Musk, Kate McKinnon’s Anthony Fauci, Cecily Strong’s Marjorie Taylor Greene, Chris Redd’s Eric Adams, Chloe Fineman’s Spears, Kyle Mooney’s Jared Leto and James Austin Johnson’s Donald Trump.

“OK, I’m Elon Musk,” Day’s Musk began. “And I’m here to officially buy Easter. I’m offering 43 billion Peeps. That was a joke. Do you get it? That’s why afterwards I said, ‘That was a joke,’ so you know it was a joke.”

Day’s version of the tech billionaire, who hosted SNL last season, went on to ask if people were afraid he would “make Twitter bad.” He added, “What are you scared I’ll buy next? The Oscars?”

McKinnon’s Fauci began by comparing Fauci to glitter, saying no matter how hard someone tries to get rid of him, he’s still in your hair and on your face.

“I’m not here to give you anymore COVID guidance,” McKinnon said. “I’m not stupid enough to think you’re actually going to follow it. All I’ll say is that COVID cases are a lot like Jesus. They’ve risen again. Don’t worry. If you’re vaccinated, you’re gonna be fine. If you’re not vaccinated, I’m not supposed to say this, but I honestly don’t care what happens to you.”

Up next was Strong’s Greene, complete with a chocolate rifle that has “real” bullets, saying she was worried about Easter now that it’s been associated with pastels and jelly beans.

“This holiday has gotten a little too LGBQRST for me,” Strong said. “There is nothing gay about Easter — a day when a bunch of male priests worship a shirtless guy with great abs, then talk about wanting to eat his body. That’s straight stuff. So, Happy Easter, and God bless Russia. I mean America, but kind of both, right?”

Redd took on the role of New York City Mayor Eric Adams and said he was grateful this Easter that NYC caught the man was responsible for the Brooklyn subway shooting Tuesday morning.

“Sure, it took 30 hours, and the suspect turned himself in, but we got him. Case closed. Subways fixed. Ride without fear. And I’m not just holding a press conference about this. I’m throwing a parade, yo.”

Fineman’s Spears made an appearance to share her pregnancy news (“I’m finally free, and I’m having a baby”); Mooney’s Leto asked people not to review Morbius; and Johnson’s Trump said that not being asked to share his Easter wish was “another example of whites being treated poorly in this country.”

Lizzo pulled double duty as April 16’s SNL host and musical guest.