Actor and Internet boyfriend Connor Storrie made his Saturday Night Live debut last Saturday with comedy. Stepping onto SNL’s stage, he brought a fresh, down-to-earth energy that was authentic and, at times, incredibly comedic. He’s been known to have previously taken clown and improv classes, so it was amazing to see his growth from where he was a year ago, a waiter at a restaurant.
The show began with a cold open about Trump’s attack on Iran, with James Austin Johnson portraying President Trump. This opening was extremely on par, with the writers scrambling to finish the sketch after news broke earlier that morning. Johnson’s Trump brings up the idea that the war is being used to distract from the Epstein Files, and cracks a joke about it causing chaos in the writers’ room.
Storrie’s monologue was one of the most anticipated moments of the show, as he discussed his rise to fame and his ongoing adjustment to his recent success. He talks about how he has been preparing for this since he was 12, and he even gets emotional when he finds out he is hosting. As had been teased, Jack and Quinn Hughes joined him on screen, joking about their Olympic experiences, with Storrie wishing that at least some hockey players had seen the show. All of a sudden, Hillary Knight and Megan Keller also joined the group on screen, with a long, well-earned applause for their recent Olympic gold medals. They poke fun at the men’s team because of their recent controversy where Donald Trump invited the men’s team to the white house, while also making sexist remarks about the women’s US team. Sexual jokes about Storrie’s show Heated Rivalry and what league he plays for (HBO) end his monumental monologue.
The first sketch of the night starred Storrie as a student, “Ricky,” who makes fun of his teacher, Mr. Fronzi, after Mr. Fronzi assigns them a quiz. Mr. Fronzi’s wife spilled coffee on him before he started teaching that day, forcing him to leave the room. Fronzi has an interesting accent that makes him mispronounce “peanuts,” which only makes the impression funnier.
A play on the Netflix show, Bridgerton, the SNL cast is sent back to the Victorian era to show what happens after a group of men argues over a game of croquet. The fight gets physical, with them saying, “How dare you!” and slapping each other until children and small dogs get involved.
Outside 30 Rock, a couple, Candace and Caspar, celebrate their anniversary. As Caspar begins to propose, Candace rejects him, redirecting his attention to men skating and laughing nearby. Midway, Storrie’s co-star Hudson Williams joins the fun in the background. The sketch ends with Candace complaining that Caspar is obsessed with the skaters, and Caspar dashes off to join their game of tag.
In the next sketch, PJ, portrayed by Storrie, is being tutored in math by the math genius Dirkus. They seem to overcome the stereotypes when PJ invites Dirkus to sit with him at lunch the next day, but then Dirkus performs an embarrassing song, and his parents eventually join him, explaining that he’s sick with a long cold. They then burst into song again, and PJ says that he’s gonna go sit with Dirkus. They then burst into song one last time.
Williams and Storrie introduce the Musical Guest Mumford and Sons for their first song, “Rubber Band Man.” The band has featured artist Hozier joining them on stage for this performance. This was not their first appearance, as they had been on the show three times before.
The weekend update begins with Jost discussing the death of Ayatollah Khomeini, and Michael Che joking that Trump has more black friends than Jost does. Then Beth’s maid of honor, Katie, portrayed by Veronika Slowikowska, makes an appearance, summarizing many headlines and discussing the Ukraine War and Jeffery Epstein. Jost returns and makes a joke about Stephen Hawking in the Epstein files. Finally, Sarah Sherman makes an appearance as baby monkey Punch’s mom to discuss why she abandoned him, and surprisingly, Punch comes out as well.
The next sketch featured Marcello Hernandez as Griff, who had recently returned from Turkey after leg-lengthening surgery, making him 2 feet taller. Storrie’s character Davis becomes defensive, saying that Griff just had a Twoberty, a second puberty. It is then revealed that Davis gave his legs to Griff, now having little legs.
To improve office morale, Coworkers begin brainstorming ideas in this new skit after layoffs are on the rise. People suggest normal things like a TV for the break room or an espresso machine. Storrie’s character suggests an office dance, “severance” style, offering a chance for people to no longer be the people they are in the outside world. Storrie’s character uses this as a chance to ask his coworker, Cassie, to the dance, despite them being married to other people. Mumford & Sons make an appearance at the end of this sketch to provide music for the dance.
Mumford and Sons perform their second song, “Here,” and are joined by Sierra Ferrell, then Aaron Dessner on stage.
The last sketch of the night was inspired largely by Storrie’s idea. He arrives as a male stripper at a bachelorette party after having been hit by a car. He is injured and bleeding, but extremely committed to performing his job, and strips down to his leopard print briefs, and ends the sketch practically humping the floor.
Connor Storrie ended the night with many heartfelt thank yous to the cast, crew, his team, and guest appearances from the hockey teams and Hudson Williams. His SNL debut was high-energy and showed that he can handle live TV without missing a beat. He kept the episode moving and had great banter with the cast, not at all bad for someone who was waiting tables a year ago.