Robert De Niro Loses His Patience — and Is Not Amused by a Taxi Driver Joke — in Rachel Dratch’s SNL 50th Debbie Downer Sketch
“Deborah, I’m going to talk now and you’re going to shut it,” De Niro said with his patience wearing thin. “I do not appreciate this conversation. I don’t want to talk about plastic in my balls”
Rachel Dratch’s Debbie Downer is on thin ice with Robert De Niro!
During the SNL50: The Anniversary Special on Feb. 16, Dratch, 58, reprised her iconic character, Debbie Downer, for a sketch and found herself on the outs with the legendary actor, 81, while working as a bartender.
After saying hello to Jimmy Fallon and Ayo Edebiri and fending off Drew Barrymore, De Niro tried to order a vodka soda with a straw from Debbie, who hit him with a reference to his famed role in Taxi Driver, when she asked, “You talking to me? You talking to me?”
“Is that supposed to be a joke?” De Niro asked unamused, to which Debbie replied, “No, I’m asking. I have dry eye, and it’s hard to discern if you were talking to me.”
The actor eventually waved it off, and Debbie handed him a drink with a straw.
As he stirred his cocktail, she quipped, “Kind of surprised you want a straw. Micro plastics, at this point, we’re all walking landfills. They’ve already taken up residence in your testes.”
“Deborah, I’m going to talk now and you’re going to shut it,” De Niro said, patience wearing thin. “I do not appreciate this conversation. I don’t want to talk about plastic in my balls. I want to laugh and feel joy and have a sliver of hope for three goddamn hours of my life. That’s all I want. I came here tonight to get a little freaking break from our world right now, which is like living in a full diaper.”
When Debbie replied, “Diapers are leading culprit in the micro plastic saga,” De Niro reached over the counter and attempted to strangle her before Fallon stopped things from going further.
After things calmed down, the actor suggested everyone join him in a toast — including Debbie, who poured a bottle of vanilla Ensure into a glass.
“To friendship and 50 years!” the group cheered before Debbie added, “And to continuing advances in curing feline AIDS. It’s the number one killer of domestic cats.”
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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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‘SNL50’: Debbie Downer Is Back, Gets Choked By Robert De Niro
By Nellie Andreeva
A little counterintuitive for a joyous celebration, the SNL50 anniversary special brought back Rachel Dratch‘s Debbie Downer.
While Debbie could bring down the mood anywhere she goes with her grim remarks, she also is one of Saturday Night Live characters that have taken on a life of their own, with Debbie Downer now widely used as a nickname for a pessimistic person.
In the SNL50 sketch, Debbie is a bartender at a backstage bar where Jimmy Fallon, Drew Barrymore and Ayo Edebiri — all in a celebratory moods — come to get a drink.
Before the trio could raise their champagne glasses for a toast, Debbie informs them how even a glass of alcohol can slash life expectancy, followed by her signature closeup to a “wa-wa” sound.
She continues to interject into the trio’s conversations with comments on impending end of humanity and bird flu.
When Robert De Niro comes along, he gets a little Raging Bull-style “You talkin’ to me?” from Debbie. Turns out she just has dry eye and can’t figure out if he is addressing her (but a wink hints that she may have done it intentionally).
Debbies proceeds to tell De Niro, who had asked for a straw, that microplastics have “taken residence in your testes.” That proves too much for the Oscar winner, who is on the verge of breaking character.
He soon finds his Raging Bull, telling Debbie, “I want to laugh and feel joy and have a sliver of hope for three goddam hours of my life. I came here to get a little frigging break from our world right now,” before reaching over the bar to choke her.
Fallon intervenes, and in the end, all toast Saturday Night Live.
Watch the video above.
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Robert De Niro Strangles Rachel Dratch’s Debbie Downer at ‘SNL50’: ‘You’re Going to Shut It’
By J. Kim Murphy
Robert De Niro and Rachel Dratch faced off on “SNL50,” with the Oscar winner confronting the former cast member in her Debbie Downer character, playing a bartender, during a sketch in the home stretch of the anniversary special.
“At this point, we’re all walking landfills,” Dratch said, in a reference to microplastics. “Odds are they’ve already taken up residence in your testes.”
“Deborah, I’m going to talk now, and you’re going to shut it,” De Niro, as a bar customer, responded. “I do not appreciate this conversation. I don’t want to talk about plastic in my balls. … I came here tonight to get a little frigging break from our world right now, which is like living in a full diaper.”
“Diapers are a leading culprit in the microplastic saga,” Dratch fired back, prompting De Niro to playfully strangle her.
De Niro was a walk-on for the sketch, which began with Downer tending bar for visiting celebrities Drew Barrymore and Ayo Edebiri. Jimmy Fallon also appeared, breaking up De Niro’s beef at the end of the sketch.
“Bobby, Bobby, stop! It’s not worth it! She thinksshe is helping, okay?” Fallon said. “My kids taught me to see the best in people.”
“Speaking of kids, it’s official: I can’t have children,” Dratch’s Downer exclaims.
Watch the anniversary skit below:
Debbie Downer first debuted in the 2004 episode of “SNL” hosted by Lindsay Lohan. The original sketch saw Lohan and cast members get their DisneyWorld vacation ruined by Downer. The integrity of the bit was also ruined too, as everybody onscreen helplessly broke character and collapsed into laughs at some point during the taping. Since that indelible first impression, Dratch has returned to “SNL” as Downer several times.
Watch the original sketch below.
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