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.
Handling Major Historical Events
Actors You Forgot Were Cast Members
The Greatest Musical Performances
Original Cast Sketch
The Best Sketches of the 1990s
Most Frequent Hosts
Youngest Hosts in SNL History
Sketches Where the Cast Keeps Laughing
Unforgettable 2000s Sketches
People Banned from SNL for Life
'80s Sketches to Never Forget
'90s Cast: Where Are They Now?
Great Sketches That Probably Got Someone Fired
Stories from Behind the Scenes
Feuds from Behind the Scenes
Famous People Rejected by SNL
Cast Members Who Perished Too Soon
Cast Members from a Single Season
Actors Who Revived Their Great Characters
All the Episodes from Season 45, Ranked
Insane Stories of Drugs Backstage
Favorite Characters of All Time
The Greatest 1990s SNL Cast Members
The Most Successful SNL Alumni
The Worst Seasons in SNL History
SNL Bloopers You Missed
The Funniest Women in SNL History
Favorite Cast Members of the 2000s
The Best Current Cast Members
The Greatest Cast Members in SNL History
Best Hosts Who Were Also the Musical Guests
Every Person Who Has Hosted SNL
Best Shows That Star SNL Alumni
Politicians vs. SNL Impressions
Every Band & Musical Guest in SNL History
Best Seasons of Saturday Night Live
Shortest Lasting Cast Members
The Very Best Characters from Weekend Update
Couples That Met Backstage
The Very Best Weekend Update Hosts
The Best Sketches of the 2010s
The Worst Current Cast Members
Surprisingly Emotional Moments
What the Cast Really Thinks About the Show
Auditions We Wish We Could Have Seen
What Politicians Thought of Those Impressions
Totally Bizarre SNL Movies You Forgot About
Funniest Movies Starring SNL Cast Members
Controversial Firings
The Worst SNL Movies Ever Made
Funniest Black Cast Members
Most Shocking Moments of All Time
President Impressions
Celebs You Want to Host SNL
Entertainment
The Most Shocking Moments From 'Saturday Night Live'
Updated September 20, 2021 18.2k votes 4.6k voters 302.1k views
List Rules
Vote up the transgressive and controversial moments from Saturday Night Live - the moments that made America say "did they really just go there?!"
Saturday Night Live premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975. That's right, this sketch comedy show has been running for more than 40 years. With all those hours of television and all those crazy personalities in one place, making live television, there are bound to be more than a few truly shocking moments. The top 18Â most shocking SNL moments on this list are legendary.
SNL has brought so many hilarious comedians to the mainstream and kick-started many wonderful film careers (and also some not-so-wonderful ones). But not everyone was successful as a host or a musical guest. Some hosts decided to take matters (and material) into their own hands after feeling censored by producers and/or the network. Some musical guests changed their playlists at the last minute, or just forgot what they were up there doing altogether.
Below we celebrate the most shocking moments from the television institution that is Saturday Night Live. Vote up the moments you were most shocked by below. And remember: It's never a good idea to rip up a picture of the pope on live television.
Even now this video is pretty edgy as far as racism goes, but in 1975 it was downright shocking. In the video Chevy Chase interviews Richard Pryor with a round of word association.
We'll let you watch and see the results for yourself. Just remember: this aired on national television.
Sinead O'Connor does what she wants. In rehearsals for her performance on SNL, she held up a photo of an African child showing that we need to fight hunger and help those in need. But for the live show, she decided that while singing about the enemy, she would bring up a picture of Pope John Paul II, tear it up on live TV, and encourage viewers to "FIGHT THE REAL ENEMY!"
She was banned from SNL and her career hasn't been too hot since the incident.
In 2008, "Weekend Update" took jabs at David Paterson, then the governor of New York. Depicting Paterson as a short-sighted fool with no idea where he was, the writers failed to realize not only was Paterson actually legally blind, but that their sketch openly mocked disabled people. Paterson came out against the sketch, calling it "third-grade humor," while the National Federation of the Blind also denounced the depiction.
While the video above doesn't depict the infamous '08 sketch, it still showcases how SNL used Paterson's disability to make him a moron.
The video really speaks for itself, and we don't want to give anything away, but while Christoph Waltz (of Inglourious Basterds and Django Unchained) was hosting SNL, they presented this skit which pissed off ALL the people. JC Penny and Sears even pulled advertising from NBC.
Christians were pissed, Muslims were pissed, Fox News was stoked to have to something to yell about.
