snl

Just yesterday saw SNL springing into April with Game of Thrones star Peter Dinklage’s first promos, and April looks even more regal. Not only will Julia Louis-Dreyfus return to SNL to host an April hour, so too will Russell Crowe making his hosting debut.

Ariana will serve as the host and musical guest on this week's episode of 'SNL.'

Watch Future perform 'March Madness' and 'Low Life' with The Weeknd on 'Saturday Night Live.'

Last night’s episode of SNL felt a little unfocused, like it didn’t quite know what to do with guest Jonah Hill. However, when the sketches connected, they really connected, with the best of them truly utilizing Hill’s acting chops (he is a two-time Oscar nominee, after all). So it shouldn’t be too surprising that the high point for Hill came in a pre-filmed sketch — he’s funny in regular sketches, but he really shines when things get a little cinematic.

Last year, SNL was hosted by Republican presidential nominee frontrunner Donald Trump and the response was unkind, to say the least. Back then, he still seemed like a big joke — just a loudmouth who was surely going to drop out at any moment. And now, as he wins primary after primary, the beloved sketch show has slowly turned on Trump, culminating in a faux campaign ad that lands like a punch to the gut.

Jonah Hill returned to SNL this weekend, and while he doesn’t have any new films to promote (aside from his small part in last month’s Hail, Caesar!) until August, an appearance from Jonah Hill is always a welcome one. So, how did Hill do in his fourth outing as SNL host? More importantly, did Adam Grossman make an appearance? Read on for our ranking of this week’s sketches from best to worst.

The Kanye West Twitter train shows no signs of stopping, but SNL seems safely out of the crosshairs after a leaked rant saw the controversial performer nearly walking off before air. Of course, veteran pro Lorne Michaels didn’t sweat the meltdown, given that “he’s an artist, you know?”

SNL has had a steady 2016 with hosts like Adam Driver, Larry David and Melissa McCarthy, but is March looking a little ho-hum? Following Jonah Hill and Future on March 5, SNL confirms that actor/singer Ariana Grande will pull double duty as both host and musical guest for the following week.

Just days into the movie’s run as the most successful R-rated opening of all time, Deadpool seemingly broke a fifth wall with a 20,000-strong petition to host SNL, or at least Ryan Reynolds in character. Take your pick of reasons that would never happen, but now Deadpool has given an official response, dragging Kanye West’s recent backstage tirade into the mix.

Last week, Beyoncé released a surprise new music video for her new song “Formation” and the world temporarily hit pause on itself so everyone could watch it, as is often the case when she does just about anything. However, this song and its video instantly courted controversy, as far too many white commenters and writers and what-have-you found themselves churning out think pieces and hot takes about how the beloved pop singer used this opportunity to embrace her heritage. In other words, a bunch of white people suddenly found themselves deeply uncomfortable that Beyoncé was black and SNL has parodied this with a fake movie trailer.

Although Melissa McCarthy was the guest host on last night’s episode of SNL, the show found a great sketch in which to showcase musical guest Kanye West. Naturally, the sketch involves the always controversial hip hop artist facing down cast member Kyle Mooney, who decides to challenge West to a rap battle. Let’s just say that it doesn’t go well for one of them.

Melissa McCarthy returned to Studio 8H for her fourth outing as SNL host, and while it may have made more sense for her to host closer to the April release date of her new comedy The Boss, it's difficult to complain. McCarthy teams up with her Ghostbusters co-stars Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones for a mostly great episode that really leans into the weird stuff and makes excellent use of musical guest Kanye West in an early contender for best sketch of the year. Read on for our ranking of this week's sketches from best to worst.

Around this time last year, SNL presented a commercial parody centering around Totino’s Pizza Rolls, just in time for the Super Bowl. And it was a nasty piece of business, tearing apart the image of the NFL’s biggest game as a day for men and imprisoning Vanessa Bayer’s indefatigable housewife in the kitchen, where she was simply tasked with warming up more disgusting food. So when SNL aired another Totino’s sketch in last night’s episode, we simply assumed it would be a carbon copy of the first one. Boy, were we wrong.

It’s kind of amazing that Larry David has never hosted SNL, and up until recently he had never really appeared on the show, either (save for a couple of tiny appearances back in the ’80s). David only managed to get one sketch on the show in the year he spent writing for SNL back in 1984–85, but now, after Seinfeld and Curb Your Enthusiasm and a couple of cold open cameos as Bernie Sanders, David finally has his chance to host. How did he do? Read on for our ranking of this week’s sketches from best to worst.

Welp, with MadTV old enough to celebrate a 20-year anniversary (and otherwise off the air to boot), it was only a matter of time SNL found itself with a little Saturday night competition. Still - gasp! - former SNL dream team The Lonely Island will lead the charge of FOX’s new sketch comedy rival, Party Over Here.

The moment former Alaskan governor and 2008 Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin endorsed Donald Trump for President of the United States, you know the producers at SNL hurried to get Tina Fey on the phone. The beloved former cast member, who just hosted the show last month, famously took on the role of Palin eight years ago and many people believe that her scathing imitation actually did lasting harm to the real Palin’s political chances. In any case, this event allowed SNL to pair Fey’s Palin with Darrell Hammond‘s Trump. Thanks, reality!

Like Dwayne Johnson and Gina Carano before her, Ronda Rousey is graduating from the ring to the stage, though her turn as SNL host this weekend is the first time she’s really had an opportunity to flex her acting muscles. Unfortunately, the MMA pro is sidelined for much of the episode, her talents underestimated and misused from the moment she walks into Studio 8H. Beck Bennett is seemingly the only cast member who really knows how to take advantage of her skill set, delivering the best sketches of the night. The lack of actual effort to give her something to do does little to disprove the idea that SNL invited Rousey to host based almost entirely on brand recognition. And that’s really too bad. Read on for our ranking of this week’s sketches from best to worst.

Selena Gomez performs while Ronda Rousey hosts tonight's girl-powered episode of 'Saturday Night Live.'

Last week’s 2016 SNL premiere with Star Wars: The Force Awakens star Adam Driver proved every bit as delightful as we’d hoped, but will Ronda Rousey pack the same punch? The Furious 7 star’s first official promos have arrived, as Rousey predictably overpowers Beck Bennett and pretty much anyone in New York.

Adam Driver is kind of a big deal right now, in case you didn’t know. As the new baddie in the Star Wars universe, Driver went from indie favorite to blockbuster star almost overnight, which is a relief because I’ve been on his bandwagon for the last few years and it’s been a little lonely over here. Driver made his SNL debut this weekend in the first episode of 2016, delivering a consistently wonderful episode that tackles everything from cat videos to Kylo Ren and...porn doctors. Read on for our ranking of this week’s SNL sketches from best to worst.