Much Watch: 9 of The Best SNL Skits of All Time

Air date: 28 January 1978 (Season 3)

Starring: Robert Klein, Dan Akroyd, John Belushi, Gilda Radner, Bill Murray

Belushi, Aykroyd, and Murray play employees at a restaurant where only cheeseburgers, chips, and Pepsi (not Coke) are offered. This is one of the earliest skits on the Olympia Café series in SNL, most of which were aired in 1978. The concept was inspired by the real-life restaurant named Billy Goat Tavern, which was frequented by Belushi.

Widely hailed as one of the best SNL skits of all time, this particular episode featured Robert Klein as a guest star.

Air date: 5 November 1983 (Season 9)

Cast: Eddie Murphy

Besides Mike Myers, it is Hollywood icon Eddie Murphy who took SNL to glorious heights in its early years. James Brown’s Celebrity Hot Tub Party was part of the Betty Thomas/Stray Cats episode. It marked Murphy’s second impression of American singer, dancer and musician James Brown.

In this hilarious segment, Murphy sang and danced around to the tunes of some of Brown’s classics, wearing a wig and a shiny blue bathrobe that read ‘Hot Tub Man #1.’ He quickly removed the bathrobe to reveal his gold bikini briefs before getting into the pool of water around which the musicians played their trumpets.

Air date: 12 November 1983  (Season 9)

Starring: Eddie Murphy

Murphy didn’t just do an impression of James Brown on SNL. He also did a parody of Fred Rogers’ popular children’s show Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood (1968–2001) in what is one of the all-time best-ever skits in SNL. No wonder then that when Murphy returned to SNL decades later in 2020, he reprised this particular role.

In this episode, Mr. Robinson has stolen a bag of groceries from a woman. Unbothered, he calmly explains to his ‘viewers’ the importance of proper diet, nutrition (which he pronounces Nut-Rit-Rion) and, once the cops arrive, the need to store the groceries in a cool, dry place.

Air date: 17 February 1990 (Season 15)

Cast: Mike Myers, Dana Carvey, Tom Hanks

SNL skits are known for hilarity, and Mike Myers’ Wayne’s World is unanimously counted among the best skits in SNL history. Though Myers originally introduced his sketch to SNL in 1989, it was this episode that gave birth to the hit 1992 film Wayne’s World and its sequel the following year.

Wayne’s World: Aerosmith is particularly memorable for adding another feather to the rock band Aerosmith’s popularity and propelling the career of Tom Hanks.

In the sketch, Myers as Wayne Campbell and Carvey as Garth Algar are joined by Hanks, who plays Aerosmith roadie Garth’s cousin Barry. The five members of Aerosmith arrive in their basement. Barry does the sound check, Wayne plays the guitar and Garth goes on the drums, while Aerosmith drummer Joey Kramer picks up the tambourine as they all belt out the theme song of Wayne’s World.

Air date: 27 October 1990 (Season 16)

Starring: Chris Farley, Patrick Swayze, Jan Hooks, Kevin Nealon, Mike Myers

With Patrick Swayze as the celebrity guest host in a time when he was the ultimate glamour icon just after he had finished filming Point Break (1991), the skit also stars Keanu Reeves, which was one of the highlights of this sketch. Though he was supposed to be the highlight, Farley stole the limelight with a comic performance of a lifetime.

Gyrating to “Working for the Weekend” by Loverboy, both Swayze and Farley competed for a spot on Chippendales. It was a rip-roaring skit. Though Farley did appear on SNL multiple times, this skit is considered the best by him.

Air date: 1 December 1990 (Season 16)

Starring: Dana Carvey, John Goodman, Phil Hartman

Though Carvey is better remembered for Wayne’s World, he also had a solo success on SNL — the Church Lady skits. The timing of the sketch was appropriate; it was when televangelists had an unbridled run on the small screen. Carvey’s character, Enid Strict, was judgemental and preachy, while also speaking in a condescending tone.

Church Lady and Saddam Hussein is one of the finest skits from the 1990s. Of course, it features the Iraqi dictator (Hartman) and even the Church Lady’s mother (Goodman). The hilarious sketch ends with the Church Lady and her mother slamming Saddam to the ground like they were pro-wrestling superstars.

Air date: 8 May 1993 (Season 18)

Starring: Chris Farley, David Spade, Christina Applegate, Phil Hartman, Julia Sweeney

Chris Farley, widely hailed as one of the greatest performers in SNL history, delivered an epic sketch with Van Down By The River. It was basically Farley playing a motivational speaker named Matt Foley, who is tasked with setting Brian (Spade) and Stacy (Applegate) on the ‘right path’ after their parents discover a bag of pot in their room.

Farley’s Matt is aggressive and equally energetic, all coming across as immensely hilarious, especially the moment when he smashes himself through the coffee table. And what is a motivational speaker? He keeps telling the kids that lives in a van down by the river!

Air date: 16 February 2013 (Season 38)

Starring: Christoph Waltz, Taran Killam, Jay Pharoah, Fred Armisen

Not many skits can so hilariously crack jokes at Quentin Tarantino and his style of filmmaking. Djesus Uncrossed, the name parodied on Django Unchained (2012), is one of the finest SNL skits in modern times. It gets everything right: from dialogue choices to character archetypes.

The sketch was a satire on how Tarantino would recreate a Biblical epic. Waltz was an interesting pick for the role of Jesus. The actor played a German dentist-turned-bounty hunter named Dr. King Schultz in the 2012 movie. In this parody, Jesus is out for revenge on the Romans who wronged him — quite similar to Django’s character in the film.

Air date: 30 September 2017 (Season 43)

Starring: Ryan Gosling, Kate McKinnon

Ryan Gosling does a parody of Avatar. But it is not the movie that is the focus — it is the font called Papyrus. Gosling maintains his straight face like a pro in what is certainly one of the best SNL skits of all time. His character gets consumed by his irrational obsession with a font so much so that he has to consult a therapist (McKinnon) and even stalks the designer of the poster of the then-planned sequel because it uses the same font.

This skit is truly epic. It showcases the brilliance in Gosling’s acting and juxtaposes it hilariously with the weirdness of the situation that is depicted in a style reminiscent of suspense thrillers. Oh, and by the way, this one also has a 2024 sequel titled Papyrus 2.