Not only did Morgan Wallen make his Saturday Night Live debut Saturday night, but the rising country star even got to act in the most self-deprecating skit you’ve seen from the show this season. The singer was initially supposed to appear in the episode hosted by Bill Burr earlier this year but was dropped after controversial videos surfaced of him at crowded college parties. Now that Wallen has decided to stay out of trouble for a few months — or, at the very least, abide by SNL COVID standards for the time being — he got his chance to shine, and the SNL writing team took full advantage of it.
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In the skit, Wallen played himself attending a party at a crowded bar. That’s when Jason Bateman, the host of tonight’s episode, showed up as Wallen from one month in the future, warning the artist to stay away from parties. Bowen Yang was also involved in the skit, playing Wallen from two months in the future.
@MorganWallen poking fun of his good time in Tuscaloosa on this SNL skit. I’m just trying to figure out what bar they’re trying to pretend to be at and trying to ignore these terrible Southern accents pic.twitter.com/S8TSCzFZNg
— Anna Catherine English (@coachace_FU) December 6, 2020
“I’m in New York City, in a hotel room, I was getting ready for SNL this Saturday, and I got a call from the show letting me know that I will no longer be able to play, and that’s because of COVID protocols, which I understand,” Wallen said in a lengthy Instagram post this October after being booted from the show.
He continued, “I’m not positive for COVID but my actions this past weekend were pretty short-sighted, and they have obviously affected my long-term goals and my dreams. I respect the show’s decision because I know that I put them in jeopardy, and I take ownership for this. I’d like to apologize to SNL, to my fans, to my team for bringing me these opportunities, and I let them down. And on a more personal note, I think I have some growing up to do. I think I’ve lost myself a little bit. I tried to find joy in the wrong places and, I don’t know, it’s left me with less joy so I’m going to go try and work on that.”
“I’m going to take a step back from the spotlight for a little while and go work on myself. I wish I could have made country music and my fans proud this Saturday, but I respect the decision once again.”
Saturday Night Live airs on NBC beginning at 11:30 p.m. Eastern. The series returns next week as Timothee Chalamet in his hosting debut.
