Bill Murray Takes Over ‘Weekend Update’ to Hilariously Rank Its Anchors from ‘Worst to Best’ During SNL50 Special
Murray ranked past anchors of the show’s ‘Weekend Update’ segment during ‘SNL50: The Anniversary Special’ on Sunday, Feb. 16
NBC
Saturday Night Live’s “Weekend Update” never disappoints!
The beloved segment during the SNL50: The Anniversary Special on Sunday, Feb. 16 took viewers back in time with former anchors Bill Murray and Seth Meyers returning to the desk. During Murray’s portion of the segment, he got to share his personal ranking of past “Weekend Update” anchors.
“Let’s just jump right in. In honor of Black History Month, I want to start by ranking the African American Weekend Update anchors,” he began, showing off a board with only one name on it. “We’ll start with number one, and this is by default, Michael Che.”
His other board of the “regular” anchors had 10 names to be revealed.
“These are in no particular order, so I’ve listed them from worst to best,” Murray said. “First off, I have to disqualify myself, because my entire time here, I was on performance-enhancing drugs, what we call an eight shaker, quaaludes, cocaine and nighttime TheraFlu.”
“Number 10. He’s one of the all-time greats,” he went on to tease Jost, saying the first name of the person was Colin — but his last name was Quinn.
In 9th place, Murray put Kevin Nealon, followed by Dennis Miller in 8th and Meyers in 7th. In 6th place was Tina Fey and Jimmy Fallon, which Murray joked was a close call between his 5th place ranking of Fey and Poehler.
“Jimmy, I’m sorry, and congratulations, Tina,” he said. “But I checked online and girl on girl is still like very, very popular.”
Chevy Chase came in 4th, with Jane Curtin and Danny Aykroyd in 3rd.
“I was the first to call Jane an ignorant slut backstage,” Murray recalled. “Danny had the brilliant idea to say it on camera and really, really mean it!”
After announcing Norm Macdonald in 2nd, Murray poked at Jost.
“That brings us to number one. Colin, I’ve got a good feeling about this,” Murray said. “Okay, number one is funny, got a great smile. He’s currently sleeping every kind of way with the lovely actress, Scarlett Johansson…”
“Of course, I’m talking about my brother Brian Doye-Murray,” he declared as the audience erupted in laughter.
Before Murray’s appearance toward the segment’s end, current hosts Colin Jost and Michael Che kicked things off by thanking fans for their support.
“It is an honor and a thrill to be hosting Weekend Update for the 50th and — if it was up to our president — final season of SNL,” Jost joked. “It is incredible that SNL is still going after all this time, and I’m just talking about tonight’s show!”
“There are so many famous hosts and musical guests here tonight that some huge names actually have to watch from Studio 8G next door, as well as from the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn,” he continued, referring to the incarcerated rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs.
Che, who pointed out that he and Jost are the “longest serving Weekend Update anchors,” went on to mention the awards the show has won before acknowledging the “100 Tonys on the crew.” Jost spoke about the “quademic” of four different illnesses going around right now.
“So we did the smart thing and packed every beloved entertainer over 60 in one tiny space!” he said.
Cecily Strong then appeared as her iconic “girl you wish you hadn’t started a conversation with at a party” to reveal that the character was pregnant.
“Michael, fact, 90% of babies born today will never know who your father is,” she quipped at Che. “Three out of four kids get bullied, and only two of them deserve it. And there are people in Africa right now.”
“That’s it?” Che asked.
“Yeah, there are people there,” she replied, later having Che hold her phone while she recorded a video of herself dancing.
“I’m sorry, where do you work?” Che questioned. “I’m the press secretary at the White House!” she said, prompting immense laughter from the audience.
When it came time to share who the father of her baby was, the fan-favorite character “Drunk Uncle” (played by Bobby Moynihan) appeared.
“We’re just a typical Hollywood couple. You know, beautiful woman in her 30s, drunk idiot in the 70s,” Moynihan explained as his famous character before Jost deemed him “too drunk.”
NBC
Meyers proceeded to take over, even saying “Thank you, Amy,” like he used to say to co-anchor Amy Poehler when they hosted together.
Paying tribute to the show’s co-creator Lorne Michaels, Meyers interviewed “Lorne’s best friends from growing up,” played by Vanessa Bayer and Fred Armisen. The conversation quickly proved to be more of a gossip session, with Meyers chiming in at the end to share his thoughts on Jost and Che.
“I do feel like their chemistry is, like, a work in progress,” he whispered before throwing it back to them.
Over the years, Weekend Update has cemented its reputation as one of SNL’s most beloved segments.
The first-ever Weekend Update was hosted by original cast member Chase during the sketch comedy show’s premiere season in 1975. The staple segment offers a satirical take on the news and often parodies current events with a sense of sarcasm and deadpan humor that fans have come to know and love.
The Weekend Update desk has since become a coveted spot on the show and has been occupied by legendary comedians ever since.
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SNL50: The Anniversary Special airs Sunday, Feb. 16, at 8 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock.
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Bill Murray Reprises ‘Nick the Lounge Singer’ With Maya Rudolph, Cecily Strong and Ana Gasteyer for ‘SNL50’
By Thania Garcia
Bill Murray’s “Nick the Lounge Singer” made a big return for Friday’s 50th anniversary of “Saturday Night Live,” or the “SNL50: The Homecoming Concert.” Murray introduced himself as Nick Valentine before launching into a monologue with Paul Shaffer, ex-SNL pianist and David Letterman’s former musical director, on piano.
“We’re here on Valentine’s day,” Murray told Friday’s audience. “I promise you, it is just a coincidence — the day is not named after me. February fourteenth has been Valentine’s Day for a good many years now, probably before I was even born, I think probably longer.”
The pair were later joined by Maya Rudolph, Cecily Strong and Ana Gasteyer — with Murray introducing the trio as “three of the most beautiful ladies a man could ever hope to meet” — who provided backing vocals in a performance Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell’s “You’re All I Need to Get By.”
Murray’s Nick the Lounge Singer character appeared during the show’s third season, when he delivered a very original take on the “Star Wars” theme song in the Powder Room on Meatloaf Mountain. With Shaffer on keys, Nick the lounge singer sings some classics before belting through that “big hit out of ’77!”
“Star Wars!/ Nothing but Star Wars/ Give me those Star Wars/ Don’t let them end/ Star Wars/ If they should bar wars/ Please let these Star Wars… stay,” he sang while entertaining skiiers.
The star-studded “Homecoming Concert,” hosted by Jimmy Fallon, will feature performances by Lady Gaga, Bad Bunny, Miley Cyrus, Backstreet Boys and Post Malone. The lineup also includes Mumford & Sons, Jack White, David Byrne, Robyn, Eddie Vedder, DEVO, Brittany Howard, Chris Martin, Bonnie Raitt, Brandi Carlile, Jelly Roll, the B-52s, Preservation Hall Jazz Band and the Roots will also perform, alongside more recent additions Cher, Dave Grohl, Ms. Lauryn Hill, Snoop Dogg, St. Vincent and Wyclef Jean.
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SNL 50: Colin Jost Reacts to Bill Murray’s Joke About Scarlett Johansson Affair
SNL 50 is here and, in honor of one of its longest running segments, held an epic Weekend Update. Here are all the details, including how Bill Murray teased Colin Jost about wife Scarlett Johansson.
Right now, New York’s hottest club is the SNL 50 Weekend Update desk.
After all, the 50th anniversary special for Saturday Night Live brought together some of the most iconic comedians to ever grace the desk, including former anchor Seth Meyers, who joined current hosts Michael Che and Colin Jost, we well as Cecily Strong and Bobby Moynihan, who reprised their beloved roles of “Girl You Wish You Hadn’t Started a Conversation With at a Party” and “Drunk Uncle.”
But one of the best moments to emerge from the anniversary segment was when Bill Murray ranked the many anchors who have sat at the desk over the years. After awarding Michael the title of number one Black anchor, Bill ranked the other anchors and co-anchor pairings, from Tina Fey and Jimmy Fallon, Tina and Amy Poehler, original anchor Chevy Chase as well as the late Norm Macdonald.
And when there was just one spot left—the top spot—and Colin was notably still absent from the list, Bill began, “Okay, number one is funny. Got a great smile, currently sleeping every kind of way with a lovely actress Scarlett Johansson.”
Before he turned the tables, “Of course, I’m talking about my brother, Brian,” revealing the number one spot as “Brian Doyle-Murray.”
Thankfully, Colin took the joke about his wife in stride, laughing even as Bill continued of Brian, “I’m told he’s a very considerate lover.”
Over the years, the Weekend Update desk has become one of SNL’s longest mainstay segments, seeing a range of comedians take on the anchor role as they welcome cast mates and celebrity hosts as guests—including the late Gilda Radner’s newscaster Rosanne Rosannadana and more recently Bill Hader’s correspondent Stefon.
The long-running bit saw the Barry star—who was not in attendance for the anniversary—come on to reveal New York City’s newest and “hottest clubs.” Among the many clubs Stefon promoted over four seasons was Maaaaary, “Opened in 1997 by missing Florida woman Lisa Martinez, this club is currently going 90 miles per hour down the West Side Highway.”
According to the promoter, whose love story with then-anchor Seth also played out during his appearances, this club had everything, including, “Charts, graphs, PowerPoint, a guy who still thinks Jamba Juice is good for you. And if you liked Russell Crowe in Les Misérables, you might want to hear Jasper the gorilla pass a kidney stone!”
But for over 10 years now, the desk has been helmed by Michael and Colin, and in that time they’ve come up with their own repeat bits—including a tradition where they write, often inappropriate, jokes for the other to cold read during the show’s annual holiday episode and season finale.
One such joke swap, written by Michael for his co-anchor, included a nod to Scarlett’s private parts during the 2024 holiday episode.
And as Colin revealed, he received some heat for the joke.
“I’m in trouble I think with a lot of people,” Colin said during an appearance on The Tonight Show the following month. “Scarlett was genuinely so shocked.”
“I was obviously surprised by everything,” he continued, “but they gave her a heads up and they were like ‘Hey would you be okay if Michael made kind of a little vagina joke at some point?’ and she’s like, ‘Sure, whatever I’m open to it.’”
But the Weekend Update anchors—past and present—aren’t the only Saturday Night Live alums returning for this epic anniversary. For all of the comedians, musical guests and former celebrity hosts in attendance, keep reading.
Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds
Kim Kardashian
Miley Cyrus
Pete Davidson
Dakota Johnson
Lady Gaga and Michael Polansky
Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost
Jackie Sandler and Adam Sandler
Kenan Thompson
Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson
Sabrina Carpenter
Meryl Streep
Eddie Murphy
Emma Stone and Dave McCary
Alexander Edwards and Cher
Bad Bunny
Amy Poehler
Tina Fey
Maya Rudolph
Miles Teller and Keleigh Sperry Teller
Drew Barrymore
Zahra Rock and Chris Rock
Will Ferrell
Chris Fischer and Amy Schumer
Chris Pine
Kate McKinnon
Sandra Oh
Lauren Miller and Seth Rogen
Nick Jonas
Aidy Bryant
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