NBC’s Saturday Night Live (SNL) faced significant backlash after airing a skit that made light of assassination attempts on former President Donald Trump. The controversial segment aired during the show’s 50th season premiere and featured comedian James Austin Johnson, impersonating Trump, joking about an attempt on his life that occurred during a rally in Pennsylvania earlier this year.
The skit, which referenced the July 13 assassination attempt that killed a Trump supporter in Butler, Pennsylvania, sparked outrage on social media. Critics accused the show of crossing a line, with some calling the joke “disgusting” and “in poor taste.” Former NBC executive Mike Sington expressed discomfort, stating, “I’m no fan of Trump’s, but I thought it was in extremely poor taste.”
Fox News host Jimmy Failla also criticized the show, stating that SNL has shifted from comedy to “activism masquerading as comedy” in recent years, pointing out the stark difference in how the show treated Democrats compared to Trump. The Trump campaign also condemned the skit on social media, calling it “disgusting” and highlighting that there were two recent assassination attempts against Trump.
Many in the entertainment and political spheres expressed concerns that the skit downplayed the seriousness of the threats against the former president, while others felt that the humor only exacerbated political divisions.