SNL Roasts Oscar Nominees, Cracks Iran Drone Joke — SkimNews
SkimNews Take
By weaving an Iranian drone strike joke into its Oscar monologue, Weekend Update reveals awards shows have become incidental props for packaging unrelated geopolitical anxieties into a single late-night segment.
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- Jeremy Culhane played Tucker Carlson on 'Weekend Update,' attacking best picture nominees including 'Sinners' — which he called 'Leftist woke America's favorite movie' — and 'Hamnet,' joking 'They took the 'L' and gave it to the 'GBTQ.''
- The Carlson impression riffed on 'Bugonia,' mocking Emma Stone's shaved head with 'heterosexual women aren't allowed to have hair anymore' and declaring 'I'm supposed to be attracted to that? No.'
- 'One Battle After Another' drew genuine confusion from the Carlson character, who said 'I did not see that movie' despite it leading this year's nominees alongside 'Sinners.'
- Anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che opened the segment with jokes about Trump's war on Iran, including a punchline that the FBI warned police Iran could retaliate with drone strikes on West Coast high-profile targets — 'The Oscars, tomorrow on NBC!'
- Jost also mocked the best actor race, framing it as a contest between Michael B. Jordan — who 'played two separate roles exploring themes of race and ancestral trauma' — and Timothée Chalamet, who played 'ping pong guy.'
Why it matters: The segment weaponized a real FBI warning that Iran could target West Coast events with drones, wrapping genuine national security anxiety into a punchline about the ceremony itself. It also positioned 'Sinners' and 'One Battle After Another' as the race's leading best picture contenders — free publicity disguised as a Carlson rant.
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