Matt Damon Played Brett Kavanaugh During the 'Saturday Night Live' Premiere's Cold Open Last Night
Last night, Saturday Night Live returned for its season 44 premiere. The cold open tackled the Brett Kavanaugh hearings with Matt Damon stopping by to play the Supreme Court nominee.
Only someone completely unfamiliar with the concept of Saturday Night Live (opens in new tab) could be surprised that the weekly sketch comedy show tackled the contentious hearings (opens in new tab) surrounding Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh (opens in new tab). SNL wasted no time getting to its take on the hearings, parodying them in the 44th season premiere's (opens in new tab) cold open.
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What's more, SNL brought out the big guns, tapping Oscar-winner Matt Damon to make a surprise appearance as Kavanaugh. The sketch wisely excludes any impression of Kavanaugh's accuser, Christine Blasey Ford (opens in new tab), instead focusing on Kavanaugh and taking aim at his heated testimony, among other things. Here are some highlights from the sketch:
Referencing Kavanaugh basically screaming through his real-life testimony:
"I'm gonna start at an 11, I'ma take it to about a 15 real quick!"
Referencing Kavanaugh's love of beer:
"I'm usually an optimist, I'm a keg is half-full kind of guy,"
Referencing the accusations against Kavanaugh:
"I'm not backing down ... I don't know the meaning of the word stop."
Other highlights from the cold open included Aidy Bryant as Rachel Mitchell (opens in new tab), the Arizona prosecutor who Senate Republicans brought in to question Ford, and SNL all-star Kate McKinnon as Sen. Lindsey Graham (opens in new tab).
"You put this man on the Supreme Court now," McKinnon says as Graham at one point during the sketch. "No vote, no discussion. You give him a damn robe and you let him do whatever the hell he wants. Because this right now, this is my audition for Mr. Trump's Cabinet. And also for a regional production of The Crucible."
Watch the full sketch for yourself below:
Later in the episode, Saturday Night Live referenced the Kavanaugh hearings again during Weekend Update, which you can (and should) watch below:
Kayleigh Roberts is a freelance writer and editor with more than 10 years of professional experience. Her byline has appeared in Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, The Atlantic, Allure, Entertainment Weekly, MTV, Bustle, Refinery29, Girls’ Life Magazine, Just Jared, and Tiger Beat, among other publications. She's a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.
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