By Kate Feldman
New York Daily News
President-elect Joe Biden’s victory at the polls also made for a ratings win for “Saturday Night Live.”
The sketch comedy show’s most recent episode, which was the first after Election Day and happened to air just hours after the results were finally announced, was the second-most-watched “Saturday Night Live” since Melissa McCarthy hosted in May of 2017.
Saturday’s show fell behind only Eddie Murphy’s Dec. 21, 2019 episode in that three-and-a-half year time frame.
The latest show was hosted by Dave Chappelle with musical guest the Foo Fighters, and drew more than 9 million viewers, NBC announced Tuesday.
By comparison, McCarthy’s episode drew 10.382 million viewers, while Murphy enticed 9.981 million.
Last weekend’s episode was also up 4% over the 2016 post-election episode, which was also hosted by Chappelle.
Less than 12 hours after the networks called the race for Biden, Chappelle used his opening monologue to urge cautious optimism.
“You ask what life was like before COVID,” he said. “A mass shooting every week. Anyone remember that? Thank god for COVID.”
He also reminded people that President Trump’s ousting does not solve the problems that permeate the country.
“Remember for the first time in the history of America, the life expectancy of white people is dropping because of heroin, suicide. All these white people that feel that anguish, that pain, they’re mad because they think nobody cares. Maybe they don’t,” he said.
“I know how that feels,” the comedian, 47, continued. “A police officer, every time you put your uniform on, you feel like you got a target on your back. You’re appalled by the ingratitude that people have when you would risk your life to save them … Everyone knows how that feels.
“But here’s the difference between me and you: You guys hate each other for that. And I don’t hate anybody. I just hate that feeling. That’s what I fight through. That’s what I suggest you fight through. You’ve got to find a way to live your life and forgive each other. You’ve got to find a way to find a way to find joy in your existence, in spite of the feeling.”
