Live from New York!Lists about Saturday Night Live cast members, hosts, musical acts, and backstage antics of America's favorite sketch comedy series, airing from 30 Rockefeller Plaza since 1975.
Only impressions of celebrities, politicians, and other famous people, that have been featured on the show in 2015, 2016, and 2017.
Saturday Night Live is still one of the top the incubators for celebrity impressions, most notably political figures. Melissa McCarthy's White House press secretary Sean Spicer and Alec Baldwin's Donald Trump have spiked the show's ratings, the highest in 20 years. Beck Bennett's Vladimir Putin and Kate McKinnon's transition from presidential candidate Hillary Clinton to Trump mouthpiece Kellyanne Conway have become gems of the show's 42nd season.
SNL cast and writers have been busier than ever before, trying to stay ahead of the constant stream of news coming out of the White House. Every week, audiences lean in to see who will play the latest cabinet member, senator, world leader, or political victim of one of the most controversial administrations in history.Â
Who's nailing it? Is it McCarthy's show-stopping Spicer or Kate McKinnon’s Conway? Or is Mikey Day's Grim Reaper as Bannon hitting the sweet comedy spot? What about the many great non-political celebrity impressions that are always crowd pleasers? Kate McKinnon’s Justin Bieber is awesome, complete with non-stop posing. Kenan Thompson’s Steve Harvey is just as entertaining as the man himself.
Which of the celebrity impressions on Saturday Night Live today are your favorite? Vote up the best of the best and see your favorites rise to the top.
Tina Fey OWNS the Sarah Palin impression. She’s got the accent, the look, and the word vomit down to perfection. Her impression, which first aired in 2008, evolves with each wacko appearance by the former politician and reality star. Here's Fey as Palin in 2016 endorsing Trump.
Larry David and Bernie Sanders could be twins. When David appeared on the show as Sanders in 2015, as the presidential election was heating up, he brought the house down. David nails Sanders’s Brooklyn accent, his hand gestures, and his entire persona.
When McKinnon first debuted her Bieber impression in a 2014 cold open, it killed. She revived the celebrity impression in 2015 to spoof Bieber’s Calvin Klein underwear campaign shoot and the outtakes from the shoot with Cecily Strong simply must be watched.
Because her Biebs is so spot on, McKinnon’s version of the Canadian pop star still pops up much to the delight of viewers. In one case, the impression saved the monologue of MMA fighter Ronda Rousey.
The first time McCarthy came out to play the White House press secretary in February 2017, it took the audience a few seconds to catch on that it was her. Once they did, it was all over. McCarthy’s Sean Spicer was nothing short of genius. She was even better the second time around.
McKinnon’s Conway is a sort of crazed nanny handler trying desperately to keep up with her own sanity. McKinnon plays the president’s counselor as resigned to her fate and willing to do anything she’s asked.
McKinnon captures the attitude and possible insanity of Clinton with her wild-eyed woman on the edge impression. McKinnon’s Clinton gives us a glimpse of just how nuts Clinton will go if she doesn’t become president. Clinton herself appeared on the show as bartender Val to McKinnon’s Clinton.
