Saturday night’s episode of Saturday Night Live saw actress Dakota Johnson return to the helm for a third stint as host. Her earlier turns arrived in February 2015 and again in January 2024, with several cameo spots in between – including a turn at the 40th-anniversary special and a brief appearance during Josh O’Connor’s December hosting gig. This week, Johnson opened the show by riffing on her recent love life, noting two very public, very lame breakups with two very awesome musicians and praising her friends for not judging her dating choices.
Monologue madness and Taylor Swift’s therapist cameo
Mid-monologue, a surprise figure stepped onto the stage: Grammy-winning pop titan Taylor Swift. Johnson quipped that Swift served as her “literal therapist,” to which Swift retorted, “I’m not your therapist. Actually, you just show up once a week at my house with an empty bottle of wine and ask if I want some.” The actress replied, “Yeah, well I have manners,” prompting Swift to continue, “And then you flop on my couch and overshare, and every so often I just say, ‘Damn, that’s crazy.’” Johnson, playing the role of the bewildered patient, asked, “Is that not a therapist?” The banter wrapped up with Johnson claiming she was doing a public service by dating musicians, saving women money on Zoloft, and added a tongue-in-cheek shout-out to “America, and also England and parts of Ireland and Cleveland, allegedly,” as Swift punctuated with a squeaky “Woo-woo!”.
‘Patient Zero’ video drops and musical fireworks
Following the live show, Swift released the music video for her new single “Patient Zero” – a track that also appears on her Life of a Showgirl: Encore Edition which arrived last Friday alongside three other new songs. The video stars Johnson and actor Colin Farrell, and the duo debuted the clip at the MTV VMAs on Sunday. One of the other fresh tracks from the Encore edition, titled “Cleveland“, finds Swift singing about her husband Travis Kelce and their marriage, with lyrics that include, “Now I’m wearing white (Yeah), so hate all you like (Uh-huh) / This is the love of my life (Hey, hey, hey).” The quartet of new songs underscores Swift’s prolific output this week, dovetailing neatly with the SNL buzz.
Political cold open and what’s next for SNL
The episode’s cold open shifted gears, lampooning the upcoming midterms with a sketch that gathered a cast of “Republican heavy hitters.” Marcello Hernández portrayed Marco Rubio, while Mikey Day took on Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Jeremy Culhane embodied Ohio senator J.D. Vance. Adding a cameo, Pete Hegseth (played by Colin Jost) sauntered in with a glass of “Bero,” described as “Spider-Man’s new non-alcoholic bitch beer.” He urged viewers to “do the gayest thing ever and vote,” claiming his influence had finally straightened out the military’s priorities and sexuality.
Beyond this week’s antics, the season continues to roll out notable hosts. Shane Gillis is slated to take the stage on Oct. 10 with Spanish pop star Rosalia as musical guest, while Indie Navarrette will make her hosting debut on the Halloween episode alongside singer-songwriter Gracie Abrams.
