cut for time

Each Queen’s Gambit Parody Is Worse Than the Last in This Cut-for-Time SNL Sketch

“Sometimes when a host is really known for like, one popular thing, everyone tries to write something about it.” That’s how Aidy Bryant explains the premise of this cut-for-time sketch from last night’s Saturday Night Live, in which the players all accost host Anya Taylor-Joy with possible Queen’s Gambit parodies, each more ridiculous than the last. There’s Kate McKinnon’s “Queens Gambit,” note the omitted apostrophe, in which Taylor-Joy faces off against McKinnon’s take on Fran Fine. There’s Beck Bennett’s “Queen’s Eye for the Gambit Guy,” which features a nightmare-fuel CGI rendition of a human-size sentient pawn with JVN’s hair. There’s “Chustlers,” which is like chess and Hustlers, which is mostly just an excuse for Ego Nwodim to wear J.Lo’s big fur coat from the movie. Bryant apologizes for her idea (Free Willie with a giant chess piece that jumps out of the water) by saying, “the world ended and we kept doing our skits.” We won’t spoil the rest of the spoof fake-outs in this sketch, except to say that “Queen’s Borat” is a good idea and we’d watch it. Very nice.

SNL Pitches Queen’s Gambit Spoofs in This Cut-for-Time Skit