“Saturday Night Live” Cold Open Skewers “Sexy Slayer” CEO Killer

The cold open of “Saturday Night Live” took direct aim at the Internet obsession surrounding Luigi Mangione, the alleged killer of United HealthCare CEO Brian Thompson, with a skit that starred Sarah Sherman as true crime enthusiast Nancy Grace.

“You psychos think he’s a sex symbol,” Sherman told the audience as Grace delved into the shocking story of Thompson’s brazen murder on December 4 in Manhattan as he headed to an investor conference. With tabloid exaggeration, Grace noted that Mangione has “women and gay men hot and bothered” and described him as “Dave Franco with Eugene Levy eyebrows.”

Kenan Thompson later appeared in the sketch as a man on the street who happened to encounter the murderer. During an interview with him at McDonald’s, where the suspected killer was caught, Grace Thompson’s character asked, “Can you believe people are attracted to this sexy huntress?”

To which Thompson responded, “Women love bad boys.” He also referred to the alleged anti-health care manifesto that Mangione is said to have written and made available online. “You used to be able to impress women with a little poem. Now you have to write a manifesto.”

The cold open also poked fun at the experience of watching a video on YouTube when an annoying commercial break occurs mid-sentence. Sherman’s Grace warned viewers that she might be interrupted by “an insanely loud commercial,” and then of course the scene jumped to “SNL” cast member Marcello Hernandez, who delivered a rapid-fire pitch for exercise equipment.

Grace’s other guest was played by Emil Wakim, a man who looks like Mangione. “I got some of the hottest DMs of my life,” the Wakim character said.

The cold open is a staple of “SNL” and is often a vehicle for celebrity cameos. Last week, Dana Carvey’s Church Lady character returned to the Saturday Night Live cold open segment.

Earlier in the season, Maya Rudolph portrayed Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris in the Season 50 premiere cold open alongside James Austin Johnson as Donald Trump, Bowen Yang as JD Vance, Jim Gaffigan as Tim Walz, Andy Samberg as Doug Emhoff and Carvey as Joe Biden.