It’s beginning to feel like James Austin Johnson is contractually obligated to bring his Donald Trump impersonation to every “Saturday Night Live” cold open. How else can you explain a fairly solid (and locally targeted) satire of the increasingly unhinged New York City mayoral debates giving way to Trump singing showstoppers from “Phantom of the Opera?”
The “debate” pitted Andrew Cuomo (played by host Miles Teller) against Zohran Mamdani (Ramy Youssef) and Curtis Sliwa (Shane Gillis, who has no shortage of history with the sketch show). Kenan Thompson played local anchor Errol Louis, who he quipped was the “least famous person to be impersonated on ‘SNL.’” He poked fun at local chains like Gristedes supermarkets (Slogan: “Say, where’d you get that wet sandwich?”) and a notorious sculpture at the mall Hudson Yards (“Shop, dine or take the easy way out.”)
The strong characters in the real-life mayor’s race gave the sketch good bones for the show’s riffing. Teller’s Cuomo said he chose to run for mayor because taking the job makes everyone hate you.
“In that way, I am already one step ahead of the game,” he joked.
Yousef’s Mamdani spent the debate alternating between making thirst trap TikToks and holding a strained grin. Gillis’ Sliwa was the highlight, rattling off increasingly ridiculous ways he was brutalized by the city’s underworld figures.
The sketch took a turn when Johnson’s Trump stepped out on stage.
“What do you think is the biggest problem you have to confront as mayor?” Thompson asked, before Johnson grabbed the spotlight.
“It’s me! They can pretend this election is about housing and taxes, but we all know it’s about me, right?” the faux-Trump said. “I’m going to be… very hands-on. This guy knows about hands-on. Right, Cuomo?”
Johnson’s Trump then bragged about a recent cognitive test at Walter Reed, saying he “did so well… that they immediately gave me an MRI.”
“I may not live in New New York anymore, but I’m always watching, lurking in the shadows. Much like the late, great Phantom of the Opera,” he said. “Terrible what happened to him in terms of opera and with regard to being burned by a chandelier.”
Johnson closed the sketch by singing “Music of the Night” while slowly lifting the iconic half-mask of the Phantom to his face.
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