Hanks played the same MAGA character in 2016, just before Trump's first election victory
'SNL' legends describe how comedy has become 'snarkier,' more political since they started
Legendary "Saturday Night Live" cast members Jon Lovitz and Kevin Nealon reflect on how comedy has changed since they started in the business.
Actor Tom Hanks' appearance on Saturday Night Live (SNL) for its 50th anniversary special sparked controversy online after Hanks portrayed a White Trump supporter wearing a MAGA hat and sporting a rural accent.
In the skit, Hanks' character appears on a parody game show called Black Jeopardy. After he gets a correct answer and is congratulated, Hanks initially refuses to shake the Black host's hand, played by Kenan Thompson.
"For its 50-year anniversary special, SNL had Tom Hanks play a racist Trump supporter afraid to shake a black man’s hand," Outkick founder Clay Travis wrote on X Monday. "Fun fact: Trump’s 2024 election win was the LEAST racially divisive American election since 1964."
Hanks played the same character in a 2016 SNL skit that aired just days before President Donald Trump was elected to his first term in office.
JOE PISCOPO ADMITS TRUMP SUPPORT WAS 'THE NAIL IN MY COFFIN IN HOLLYWOOD'
Former political advisor to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Link Lauren, also responded to the skit on X, calling it a "tired trope," and suggesting it's the reason for SNL's ratings tank.
"Tom Hanks just came out on SNL in a MAGA hat for a bit where he acted like he didn’t want to shake a black man’s hand," Lauren, wrote. "This show wonders why their ratings are in the gutter. Trump won the popular vote. This tired trope that MAGA is racist is disgusting. SNL is an unfunny show for snobbish liberal elites. The current Republican Party is a big tent coalition compromised of many former Democrats. Good riddance, SNL!"
'SNL' LEGENDS SAY COMEDY HAS BECOME BIGGER, ‘SNARKIER’ AND MORE POLITICAL
Actor Tom Hanks appeared on SNL for its 50th anniversary special, portraying a White Trump supporter wearing a MAGA hat and sporting a rural accent. (Getty Images)
Other reactions included conservative influencer Kevin Dalton, who also noted Trump's win on Election Day.
"Tom Hanks in a MAGA hat, horrified at the idea of shaking a black man’s hand, tells you everything you need to know about what the left has learned since November and why they will thankfully continue to lose landslide election after landslide election for the foreseeable future," Dalton wrote.
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Three former SNL cast members, Jon Lovitz, Kevin Nealon, and Siobhan Fallon Hogan, told Fox News Digital in recent interviews that the comedy landscape, particularly the stand-up comedy scene, has become sharper and snarkier in the past few years.
Jeffrey Clark is an associate editor for Fox News Digital. He has previously served as a speechwriter for a cabinet secretary and as a Fulbright teacher in South Korea. Jeffrey graduated from the University of Iowa in 2019 with a degree in English and History.
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