Surprise!Aziz Ansariis live from New York asFBI Director Kash Patel.
"Saturday Night Live" returned after a brief hiatus on May 2 and, in its cold open, featured the "Parks and Recreation" alum debuting an impression of Patel. The sketch took place at a press conference, whereColin Jost's Pete Hegsethintroduced Patel as someone who wanted to "say hello before he's almost certainly fired."
After taking the podium, Ansari's Patel addressed the security incident at last week's White House Correspondents' Association dinner, where a suspect,Cole Tomas Allen, attempting to assassinatePresident Donald Trump.Prosecutors say that Allentried to storm the dinner − whereVice President JD Vanceand others from the administration were also in attendance − with multiple guns and knives, intending to kill high-ranking officials.
"Now, after the attempted assassination ofPresident Trump− another one! − we conducted an investigation that could not have been more thorough," Ansari as Patel said. "We dotted every 'T' and bulged every eye. And for those of you saying I'm doing a bad job running the FBI, well, what if I told you this agency is only six weeks away from pinpointing the exact location of Osama Bin Laden?"
Ansari's Patel went on to declare he is a "trailblazer" as the "first Indian person to suck at their job," proving that "we can be just as incapable and incompetent as the whites." As he took questions, he insisted he is not worried about being fired. "Even the Correspondents' dinner shooter said kill everyone but Mr. Patel. You get a shoutout like that in a psycho's manifesto, you must be doing something right."
The rest of the cold open centered on Jost as Hegseth giving an update on the war with Iran. After entering with a comically large drink, he told reporters, "This war has been a movie − specifically, 'The NeverEnding Story.'" The sketch briefly acknowledged the recent drama surroundingJimmy Kimmel, who Trump has demanded be fired from his late-night ABC show for jokingly calling first ladyMelania Trumpan "expectant widow."
"I wear my religion on my sleeve − literally, I have a tattoo on my forearm of Jesus choking out Jimmy Kimmel," Jost as Hegseth said.
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Ashley Padilla also made a brief appearance as White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt. "I'm about to go on maternity leave," she noted. "That's when you tell President Trump about your maternity, and he says, 'Leave.' "
Olivia Rodrigohosted the May 2 episode of "SNL," on which she also served as the musical guest. This was Rodrigo's "SNL" hosting debut, though she has performed as musical guest twice before.
Olivia Rodrigo has officially kickstarted her newest era. The "Good 4 U" singer, who is no stranger to turning a red carpet into her own runway, recently unveiled her highly anticipated third album. Titled "You Seem Pretty Sad For a Girl So in Love," the album will officially be releasing on June 12, 2026, and marks a new (pinker!) chapter for Rodrigo following the success of her first two albums "Sour" and "Guts."
From her iconic performances to her standout red carpet looks, here's a look at Olivia Rodrigo's career through the years starting with her recent appearance at the Chloe fall/winter 2026-2027 show in Paris. " style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" />
Rodrigo attends the Vanity Fair Oscar Party at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in Los Angeles on March 15, 2026.
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Feist and Rodrigo perform onstage during the 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at Peacock Theater on Nov. 8, 2025, in Los Angeles.
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Rodrigo performs during the American Express Platinum Card x Olivia Rodrigo Concert at Park Avenue Armory on Oct. 23, 2025, in New York City. The singer-songwriter followed her 102-show, arena-filling Guts world tour with the intimate "secret" concert.
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Olivia Rodrigo's new era begins! See her career, from breakout artist to Grammy winner
Olivia Rodrigohas officially kickstarted her newest era.The"Good 4 U" singer, who is no stranger to turning a red carpet into her own runway, recently unveiled herhighly anticipated third album. Titled "You Seem Pretty Sad For a Girl So in Love," the album will officially be releasing on June 12, 2026, and marks a new (pinker!) chapter for Rodrigo following the success of her first two albums"Sour"and"Guts."From her iconic performances to her standout red carpet looks, here's a look at Olivia Rodrigo's career through the years starting with her recent appearance at the Chloe fall/winter 2026-2027 show in Paris.
Who's hosting 'SNL' next?
"SNL" is in the home stretch of its 51st season, withonly two episodes leftbefore the summer hiatus.
'SNL' reveals schedule:Who's hosting, performing for rest of the season?
Matt Damonwill next take the stage on May 9, joined by musical guestNoah Kahan. May 16 will be the show's season finale, andWill Ferrellis set to host with musical guestPaul McCartney.
"SNL" will then be off for the summer; the new season typically returns in late September or early October. The show also usually undergoes some changes to its cast between seasons, but so far, no departures have been announced.
Contributing: Aysha Bagchi
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:'SNL' cold open features Aziz Ansari spoofing FBI's Kash Patel
