- 2 months ago
Kristen Wiig is one of the greatest chaos agents in “Saturday Night Live” history, and these sketches prove it. From unhinged characters to impossible improv energy, her performances sent castmates into fits of laughter time and time again. Which moment had you cracking up the hardest? Let us know in the comments below!
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00:06Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the funniest moments
00:10when Kristen Wiig's comedic chaos left her Saturday Night Live scene partners fighting for composure.
00:16We're including any sketch where her performance made someone break character.
00:21It's a glamorous one day, no nice day, and the bevel-be-tied royal comfort zone.
00:27You'll be golfing all day and leaving before dinner courtesy of Femble Beach.
00:33Number 20, Engagement Surprise.
00:36Sue treats confidential information like a lit match,
00:39and Wiig spends the entire restaurant sketch daring it to explode.
00:44What's going on with you?
00:46I love surprises. I love being involved. God, I'm so freaking excited.
00:53Josh Brolin's Chris gathers friends to reveal that he plans to ask Kat, played by Casey Wilson, to marry him.
01:00But Sue's escalating excitement quickly hijacks the occasion.
01:04She stuffs food into her mouth, hides behind a lobster tank,
01:08drenches herself with wine, and smashes a glass over her head.
01:11I thought Sue was coming.
01:17She went to wash her hands?
01:20Yeah, she should be back any minute.
01:23She's back.
01:27Then Chris drops to one knee.
01:30Wiig bolts upright, screams about tradition, and launches straight through a paper partition,
01:35prompting Brolin to barely suppress a helpless grin before recovering for the big question.
01:40His near-break lasts only a second, but it perfectly sells Sue's ability to overwhelm even the toughest teen partner.
01:48Kat, will you marry me?
01:51Oh my gosh, Chris.
01:53Yes.
01:53Yes!
01:55Congratulations!
01:57We're getting married!
01:59She said yes!
02:00Number 19, Shanna Ski Retreat.
02:03Everyone arrives expecting a cozy lodge party, but Wiig turns the evening into an endurance test for everyone's composure.
02:11Hershanna enters in full bombshell mode, then destroys the fantasy by attacking the fireplace,
02:17noisily drinking hot chocolate, and describing a revolting medical problem.
02:22Charles Barkley plays Mr. Jeggs, the one man who remains completely enchanted,
02:27while Kenan Thompson, Will Forte, and Andy Samberg recoil.
02:45Throughout the sketch, Barkley looks as though he could crack it any second,
02:49but he mostly stays firmly in character.
02:52His composure finally slips when Shanna starts unzipping her jacket,
02:56drawing a quick, unmistakable smile.
02:58Apparently, even Shanna's greatest admirer had limits.
03:03Then I guess I'd better cheek it off.
03:17Number 18, Weekend Update, Judy Grimes.
03:21Keeping a straight face beside this nervous travel rider should have qualified as an endurance sport.
03:26Well, Judy!
03:29Judy!
03:30I'm sorry, did I surprise you?
03:33Yes.
03:34Just kidding, I knew you were there.
03:35Just kidding, I didn't.
03:36Just kidding, I did, but I knew you were gonna wear that.
03:37Just kidding, I did, because I hid in your dressing room for a little bit.
03:39During the character's final appearance,
03:42Wig launches into an increasingly frantic chain of reversals,
03:45while Seth Meyers tries to steer the conversation toward travel.
03:49Every just kidding opens another absurd detour,
03:52and the routine keeps accelerating until her travel advice disappears beneath a mountain of contradictions.
03:58Just kidding, I drink melted cheese all day long.
03:59Just kidding, it's only from 7 to 9 p.m.
04:01Just kidding, I can't eat melted cheese, it's too hot.
04:02Just kidding, I can't, I just wait for it to cool.
04:03Just kidding, speaking of cool, what's up with Fonzie?
04:05I mean, is he around or what?
04:06Just kidding.
04:06I really want to know who's the next Fonzie.
04:08Just kidding, I know, it's Shia LaBeouf.
04:09Just kidding.
04:10Judy, I don't, just, I don't even know what you're talking about, Judy.
04:15Meyers starts smiling as the spiel gathers speed,
04:18but the longer she continues, the less he can hide it.
04:21By the time Wig reaches the marathon's final stretch,
04:24he is openly grinning at the desk.
04:26His crack feels inevitable.
04:28The joke is repetitive by design,
04:30yet Wig's speed, precision, and mounting panic keep making each reversal land harder.
04:36Oh, I feel like I'm there, just kidding, I don't know where I am, just kidding,
04:39but I do know where I want to be, back in the U.S., back in the U.S.,
04:40just kidding, back in the USSR, just kidding, just kidding.
04:42Judy?
04:46Wow.
04:52You did a great job, but I have to stop you.
04:55Can't keep up with Judy Grimes' mile-a-minute delivery?
04:58Take a breath and jump into Miss Mojo's 24-7 live stream instead.
05:02Scan the QR code on screen to join us live for non-stop pop culture fun.
05:07Number 17, Secret Word with Kristen Wiig
05:10Mindy Elise Grayson can turn a simple introduction into an entire theatrical event.
05:16Returning to Secret Word as the self-important stage actress,
05:19Wiig dances onto the set, while Kenan Thompson's new host, Grant Chode,
05:24welcomes her with matching enthusiasm.
05:26Oh, Mindy, you look amazing as always.
05:29Oh, thank you, thank you, Grant.
05:31I lubed my lips with margarine,
05:33and I'm wearing scotch tape on my temples to hold my face up.
05:35Her grand introduction instantly widens Thompson's smile into a visible break.
05:41Mindy barrels through the game with misplaced confidence,
05:44blurting out the secret words and treating every answer like another chance to perform.
05:49All right, look at me, this one's easy.
05:51Remember, Mindy, do not say the secret word.
05:54I think I've played this game enough to know the rules.
05:56I know you're new, but I've got this covered.
05:59Branch.
06:00Wiig commits completely to her character,
06:03making even Mindy's questionable beauty secret sound like priceless theatrical wisdom.
06:08Her chaos never feels random.
06:11Every gesture and declaration belongs to a woman convinced the spotlight is permanently hers.
06:17He made me cover my face with one of Elizabeth Taylor's publicity photos.
06:20I just wish there had been eye holes.
06:23Number 16.
06:25Weekend Update
06:26Ann Linda on the Latest Hit Movies
06:28Fourteen years away from the desk only sharpened this critic's spectacular contempt.
06:33All right, Ann Linda, long time no see.
06:39Well, hello, Seth.
06:44Someone's gotten some work done.
06:47Ann Linda has barely started speaking when Colin Jost breaks and lets out a chuckle,
06:52clearly bracing himself for whatever Wiig has planned.
06:55She promptly mistakes him for Seth Meyers and jumps into a savage tour of recent entertainment,
07:01taking aim at Barbie, Oppenheimer, the bear, and more.
07:05Ryan Gosling?
07:07More like Ryan Gosling.
07:13I think he just said his name the same place.
07:17It's very hard to make fun of.
07:20Her complaints are powered by mangled names, aggressively literal interpretations,
07:26and a rating system built from irritated noises rather than stars.
07:30Wiig's hunched posture, pinched expressions, and escalating outrage
07:34make Linda's return feel instantly familiar
07:37and leave Jost fighting amusement throughout the segment.
07:41Send the pups to chop vegetables over at the bear.
07:44Why is he so upset?
07:45He's got a bunch of money on the tomato sauce.
07:48And what the heck is Kennergy?
07:51Aunt Linda, everyone.
07:53Number 15. Update Thursday.
07:56McCain Lady.
07:57One wandering interruption is all it takes to derail Seth Meyers and Amy Poehler.
08:02I got the proof that Obama is a muslin.
08:08Obama is a muslin?
08:10No, ma'am, muslin is a kind of fabric.
08:13During an episode of Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday,
08:16Wiig appears at the desk as a woman consumed by wildly misinformed suspicions about Barack Obama,
08:23prompting both hosts to correct her increasingly garbled accusations.
08:27Meyers starts smiling almost immediately as her hesitant delivery and bizarre word substitutions gain momentum.
08:33Well, I do know he's a 50% Egyptian.
08:40He's gonna change the White House to a pyramid.
08:42No.
08:47Poehler clamps down harder and tries to steer the segment forward,
08:51but Wiig keeps piling on fresh nonsense until Poehler finally gives in, too.
08:56What begins as political satire gradually becomes a battle for composure,
09:01with both anchors defeated by Wiig's perfectly timed unpredictability.
09:05Obama wants all the weddings to be gay weddings, and they have orgies.
09:13Orgies?
09:15Ma'am, orgies?
09:16I don't know where you're getting this stuff.
09:19No.
09:1914.
09:20Surprise Lady Thanksgiving
09:21Sue can barely survive good news, and everyone around her pays the price.
09:26At a family gathering, Cecily Strong's character announces that her brother Paul,
09:31played by Pete Davidson, is home on military leave and ready to surprise their mother,
09:37played by Vanessa Bayer.
09:38Don't you see?
09:39She's gonna get here?
09:42Thinking her son is overseas?
09:45But he's over there?
09:46Behind the door?
09:48And she's surprised?
09:51Sue immediately spirals, squeezing out strangled noises and insisting her legs have stopped cooperating.
09:57As Wiig rises and staggers stiffly across the room, repeatedly leaning on Leslie Jones for support,
10:04Jones inevitably breaks character.
10:06I think my legs are locking up.
10:07I gotta walk around.
10:11The sketch keeps escalating through a practice reveal, a mouthful of pillow,
10:16and a turkey hurled through the window.
10:18Wiig makes anticipation look physically dangerous,
10:21turning Sue's inability to contain joy into chaos no one else in the room can control.
10:26I gotta get out of here!
10:33Number 13.
10:35Secretaries
10:36An ordinary client meeting has no chance once Tootie and Trudy begin helping.
10:41Tootie, would you mind picking up, uh...
10:43Your son from daycare?
10:44Got him right here.
10:48Well, Trudy, I don't have a son.
10:50Well, then your daughter dresses like a boy.
10:52John Hamm plays a lawyer named Alan, who explains to his new client, Alana Kutchen, played by Bowen Yang,
10:58that his secretary, Trudy, played by Heidi Gardner, is only right half the time.
11:03So, he has hired Wiig's equally scatterbrained Tootie, leaving the office wrong all the time.
11:09Hamm's composure slips when Tootie decides to relax, lies back on her desk, and sends it crashing beneath her.
11:15I know you're new, but I'd really like you to just...
11:17To just kick my feet up and take a load off? Now that, I can do.
11:24Oh my god!
11:26He smiles through the wreckage before pulling himself back into the scene.
11:31Wiig and Gardner's matching cadences make Incompetence look like a perfectly choreographed double act.
11:37Hate, love, a catch.
11:39Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna have another bourbon on the rack.
11:44Number 12, Weekend Update, Garth and Kat sing Hanukkah songs.
11:49These two arrive with an album to promote, and absolutely nothing prepared.
11:53The name of the album?
11:54Oh, thanks for asking.
11:55It's called, Hanukkah is one of those only things that you're sure to know.
12:00And don't we all.
12:04Appearing on Weekend Update in matching blonde wigs,
12:07Wig and Fred Armisen show up still applying makeup and insist their new Hanukkah record is ready.
12:13It plainly is not.
12:15And they told it as a secret.
12:18They told it as a secret.
12:21They told it as a secret.
12:21They told it as a secret.
12:22Hang on, I have newspapers.
12:24Hang on, guys.
12:25Guys.
12:25Armisen invents each melody and lyric in real time,
12:28while Wig watches closely, racing to echo every unpredictable phrase.
12:32Their laughter is clearly mutual, but his composure repeatedly slips as her breathless attempts to follow turn his improvised lyrics
12:40into an even wilder duet.
12:43There's a swirl in our pile of mud, pile of mud, dip through the mud again with the shovel and
12:52the bell jump.
12:53Michael Che grows suspicious that any of the material actually exists, prompting the pair to offer increasingly elaborate defenses.
13:01The result feels like two friends competing to surprise each other faster than either can recover.
13:06And the celebrate, celebrate, celebrate, celebrate, celebrate.
13:14Garth and Cat, everybody.
13:17Number 11.
13:19The Californians.
13:20Stewart has cancer.
13:22A cheating scandal takes a backseat to California traffic in this delirious soap opera spoof.
13:27In the first installment of the parody, Wig's Karina is caught with Bill Hader's Devin when Fred Armisen's Stewart returns
13:35home early.
13:35Stewart, why are you him so early?
13:38I skipped Wilshire and took Beverly over to Santa Monica and took that all the way up.
13:43Yeah, I just came over to fix the speakers, the outside speakers on the patio.
13:48After Stewart orders Devin to leave, he and Karina launch into an increasingly heated argument over which roads Devin should
13:55take,
13:56pushing an already flustered hater into a full break.
13:59Wig's own barely-contained laughter makes recovery even harder.
14:04Get back on San Vicente, take a 10 to 10, then switch over to the 405 North and let it
14:12dump you out into Mulholland where you belong.
14:16The plot then swerves into melodrama when Greg, played by Josh Brolin, arrives with Stewart's diagnosis.
14:23Yet even grim news cannot stop another conversation about travel routes.
14:28Haters' contorted struggle to stay in character becomes the unforgettable centerpiece of the skit.
14:33George, at this time of day, it's gonna be jumped.
14:37Are you cross-eyed?
14:39Just get out of the tin and get out of here!
14:41Number 10, Weekend Update, Garth and Kat sing Halloween songs.
14:46Coming together as a hilarious duo, Garth and Kat are two unprepared singers.
14:52Are you ready to go? Do you need a minute?
14:53Oh, no, we're ready.
14:54Yeah, we're ready and prepared.
14:55We're ready to go, we're ready to do it.
14:56Their act brings joy and confusion to Weekend Update, with several songs about Halloween.
15:01It's clear that there's a degree of improvisation involved here that makes it even more difficult to perform.
15:07Ready, go.
15:08Dracula!
15:11This is apparent from the very first song, because Fred Armisen can't maintain his composure from the start.
15:18Kristen Wiig tries to keep up with her scene partner as he crumbles.
15:21After trying to sing about Dracula, this group's set up for another performance that proves to be equally silly.
15:34It speaks to the power of Wig that she can hang in there while Armisen loses it.
15:39Number 9, Herb Welch, Falling Ice
15:42With Bill Hader playing this recurring character, this sketch starts off strong with some wacky interviews.
16:02The ornery Herb Welch later talks to Kristen Wiig's co-op president in a tense standoff.
16:09Tell me, sir, uh, how's the thing I like, uh, you fit in all this?
16:14Yeah, I'm a woman.
16:16Woman, well, let me see.
16:18Welch's rude comments lead up to an outrageous line of questioning that includes hitting her with a microphone.
16:25Wig holds steady through the contact, but Hader has to hide his giggles from the camera.
16:34The latter has to compete with the former's deadpan expression that doesn't waver for a second.
16:40In what might be the best version of this recurring skit, the actress makes a huge impact as one of
16:46the most combative interviewees ever.
16:48There's always a life in the church.
16:51And I'm gonna get away from it.
16:52Hey, now, come on, Herb!
16:53Number 8, Weekend Update
16:55Paula Deen on the lawsuit against her.
16:57Always willing to try out an over-the-top character, Kristen Wiig turns this Paula Deen impression into a hilarious
17:05comic presence.
17:06Hi, Sam.
17:08Hi.
17:09How's your mom and them all? They all good?
17:11The celebrity chef appears on Weekend Update to address serious allegations, but she does it with a chicken leg and
17:18a stick of butter.
17:19I feel like I'm standing in a big old puddle of butter and all, and my feet are trying to
17:26gain traction, but I'm just like, whoop, whoop, whoop, like a three-stooge.
17:31Getting a front-row seat to some peak comedy, Seth Meyers tries to keep it together through Wig's ridiculous interpretation
17:38and wonderful vocal stylings.
17:40Meyers struggles through his lines after watching his co-star use the butter stick on the chicken.
17:45You ever have that happen to you, Sam?
17:49Ah, no, not recently.
17:52Disappearing into the absurdity of the character, the actress loses herself in the moment and entertains her scene partner in
17:58the process.
17:59I would rather diet and exercise than use the N-word.
18:04Paula Deen, everyone!
18:06Hello!
18:06Hello!
18:08Number seven, Weekend Update, Tamara Parks on PGAD.
18:12Hoping to talk about the struggles of persistent general arousal disorder, this character tries to tell her story about fighting
18:20the condition.
18:21Hi.
18:22It's a little embarrassing.
18:24Yeah, I can imagine this is a very sensitive and personal topic.
18:27Tamara Parks claims to be past it before proving everybody wrong.
18:31Yeah, well, luckily, with the help of my physician, I was able to find treatment.
18:36And today, I can say that I'm fully...
18:40Her reactions and facial expressions make for some truly funny moments, with even Seth Meyers having to cover his mouth.
18:48Are you okay?
18:50Yes.
18:55Um, I thought, uh, something was going to happen, um, but it didn't.
19:00Oh, yo, yo, yo, yo.
19:02Wig's performance is so subtle and hilarious that the Weekend Update host has to laugh along with the audience.
19:09The Parks character has a mix of awkwardness and tragedy that's a signature of the performer's time on the show.
19:15With that in mind, it's easy to see that it could break up the likes of another comedy master.
19:21Tamara Parks, everyone!
19:25Number 6.
19:26Weekend Update
19:27Rebecca LaRue, the Flirting Expert
19:30While she's on Weekend Update to talk about romance, this Kristen Wiig character seems more interested in wooing the host.
19:37Hi, Seth.
19:40Thanks for having me.
19:41Rebecca LaRue says that she's a flirting expert, but all of her methods seem to miss the mark.
19:46She likes to throw herself around and make loud movements in her pursuit of relationships.
19:52I'm sorry, Rebecca, do you want to explain what you're doing right now?
19:56Just, like, body language stuff, you know, that people can do.
20:00These continue to make Seth Meyers uncomfortable until they reach a boiling point, including a moment with her legs in
20:06the air.
20:07Wig's co-star has to deal with her getting up close and personal in a hilarious dose of physical comedy.
20:16The lead performer doesn't even need words to crack up Meyers, taking him down with her aggressive advances.
20:23Number 5.
20:25Hollywood Dish with Scarlett Johansson
20:27Alongside Bill Hader, Kristen Wiig plays an excited journalist interviewing Scarlett Johansson.
20:34I'm Brady Trump.
20:35And I'm Anastasia Sticks.
20:36The TV personalities are broad parodies of interviewers that play up their reactions to every answer.
20:42This includes one moment where Hader does a spit take directly at Wiig, later emptying the entire cup onto his
20:49co-star.
20:50Just tell us how excited you are for the next and probably final season of The Jersey Shore.
20:57Oh, I've, you know, I've never seen that show.
21:01The sight of red slushy all over her makes both of her scene partners crack up.
21:06It's even harder for Hader, waiting for his co-presenter to say her next line.
21:11Due to her laughing and having blocked vision, Wiig takes an extended pause before finishing off her lines.
21:17You have great skin. What's your secret?
21:22Johansson luckily gets to be off camera for this moment, likely chuckling to herself as she watches everything unfold.
21:28I cannot believe I went on this stupid show. I'm going to fire my publicist, okay? Thank you for a
21:32junkie time.
21:34Oh, wow.
21:35She is so cool.
21:37Number 4.
21:37Weekend Update
21:38Garth and Kat sing Christmas songs.
21:41Dress rehearsal.
21:42There's no better way to celebrate the holiday season than with some seasonal songs.
21:47Thankfully, Garth and Kat have some new ones to dish out for audiences.
21:52Don't forget about Christmas when the stockings are hung.
21:59In this sketch, they pretend to have everything written and clearly lie about it.
22:04Fred Armisen tries to take the lead and dive bombs within seconds of the first track.
22:09Was that an actual song? I mean, do you know the words of what you're saying?
22:14We're kidding, Seth.
22:15It's a comedy show, right?
22:16This creates a back and forth between him and Kristen Wiig, turning the Weekend Update segment into a rollercoaster ride.
22:24By the merced, you guys better come around!
22:30Wiig starts to laugh, helping to keep her co-star chuckling throughout.
22:33The second song doesn't fare much better, but even Seth Meyers feels inspired to join in with them.
22:40Good job, you guys!
22:41Bring it up there, Seth Meyers!
22:44Thank you, Seth Meyers!
22:46Number 3.
22:48Whiskers Are We with Kristen Wiig
22:50With another comedy powerhouse like Kate McKinnon, Kristen Wiig shines even brighter in this entertaining sketch with cats.
22:57Cats are the croutons on the salad of life.
23:01A cat is an angel that poops in a bar.
23:04The pair are offering up felines for adoption and letting the audience in on their apparent love life.
23:09Wiig's character gets so handy at one point that she manages to break McKinnon.
23:15That is my nipple and I think you know that.
23:19I think I know you like it.
23:21Oh, boy.
23:22There are also lots of animals in this scene, making for additional chaos.
23:26The lead performer is ultimately no match for her co-star's absurd behavior and constant attention.
23:33Pearl is white as a ghost because she is one.
23:37She died in the 1940s, but she's sticking around because she has unfinished business.
23:43If she appears in your mirror, it's over.
23:46These two legends are so deep into character that they still manage to finish the skit without letting laughter or
23:52furry creatures stop them.
23:53So come on down to Whiskers Are We.
23:56The adoption process is simple.
23:59We put cats in your car when you're not looking.
24:01Number 2.
24:02The Californians.
24:03Karina Returns.
24:05If you're an SNL fan, you know that the Californians can be full of wild surprises.
24:11What are you doing here, Devin?
24:13I thought you were at Comic-Con.
24:14I was.
24:16I saw Darth Vader.
24:18There's also a chance that one or more cast members will break in the sketch.
24:22This scene is no different, featuring Kristen Wiig's Karina attempting a disguise.
24:27We, you, who are you?
24:30I'm Brad, the male gardener.
24:33Once Fred Armisen joins Wiig and Bill Hader in the mayhem, it's only a matter of seconds before they fall
24:39apart.
24:40Wiig has to do it all with a fake mustache that makes it harder for her co-stars to stay
24:44in character.
24:45I love that at gardening school near Dodger Stadium with all the other men.
24:49After a certain point, the actress keeps the laughs coming in a silly performance.
24:54Add in some outlandish reactions and you've got one of the funniest versions of this skit.
24:59Wait a minute, what?
25:01Who's Jaya?
25:19Watched for purchase at TerribleInfluence.com.
25:21Terrible Influence is a satirical board game about the dark side of fame from the writer of the most popular
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25:29I can make an apology video.
25:31Oh, you so would.
25:32Click on the link in the description to check out the game and be the first to play Terrible Influence.
25:42What do you get when you put Maya Rudolph and Kristen Wiig in a sketch together?
25:46If you're talking about Super Showcase Spokesmodels, you get one of the funniest skits of their careers.
25:52You two look lovely today.
25:55Thanks, Carl.
25:56Shonda's wearing Christopher Cain.
25:58And Vonda's wearing a Christopher Cain knockoff.
26:01The pair try to show off the prizes, but the entire presentation quickly turns into a disaster.
26:07Wiig's pronunciations and accents are enough to send her and her co-stars into laughing fits.
26:12You love ghosts.
26:14You love an X-Prize.
26:15You didn't win.
26:17It's a real all-in-one.
26:20In between Chickens and Clocks, Rudolph and even Bill Hader tried to hold it together.
26:25You like chicken, Deborah?
26:27There's also a golf cart stunt that takes out part of the set.
26:36That wasn't supposed to happen.
26:38It's a hilarious scene from start to finish, easily tripping up some of the best performers in the show's history.
26:45Which Kristen Wiig moment would have made you lose it on live television?
26:49Let us know in the comments.