Saturday Night Live Recap: Walton Goggins Charms Your Mom

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Initially hosting duties, Walton Goggins has been consistently active in the entertainment industry for approximately three decades. However, his performances this year in “The White Lotus” and “The Righteous Gemstones” have catapulted him from being recognized as a “character actor” to simply “Walton Goggins.” His newfound fame is so widespread that even those who haven’t watched “White Lotus” are familiar with him through internet memes. This led me to speculate whether there would be another ‘White Potus’ sketch this week (fortunately, none was produced) or if any of the Aimee Lou Wood non-dramatic events would receive attention (again, fortunately, they did not).

Goggins’ speech was brief yet endearing, beginning with him addressing the unexpected attention as a newly crowned sex symbol, which often arrived in the form of indirect praises (“Hollywood’s Newest Heartthrob Is a Greasy, Depressing Little Man Whom No One Saw Coming.”). It is indeed accurate that he is at a stage in his career where people are intrigued by his life, leading to articles such as “Walton Goggins’ Net Worth Feels Perfect For His Quirky Career” (and yes, I did click on it for research purposes, so enjoy the ad revenue, Men’s Journal…). He manages to captivate audiences with his humor, charisma, and a touch of self-deprecation. His mother joined him on stage, and they shared a dance – how sweet!

This episode seemed to be tailored specifically for him, offering a refreshing change since several episodes this season have underutilized the host. Goggins showcased his talents effectively as a horny server at a Mother’s Day brunch, a slick yet grungy character named “Matt” encouraging the founding fathers to draft the second amendment, and a humorous portrayal of a Squatty Potty user, among other roles. The narrative occasionally took unexpected turns, which I find particularly thrilling about this show. Notably, there were appearances by Cecily Strong (and Colin Jost!) in the opening sketch, as well as Sam Rockwell in the “Tiny Baby Shoe” song led by Jane Wickline. Consequently, this episode is among my favorites from this season. Here are some of the standout moments:

Mother’s Day Brunch

https://youtube.com/watch?v=watch?v=LaJN5W2FzLs

Goggins embraces his new role as a charmer while serving two mothers (Sarah Sherman and Heidi Gardner), leaving their sons (Mikey Day and Andrew Dismukes) slightly uncomfortable. His affection towards the mothers is amusingly contrasted by his nonchalance towards the sons (“How’s your sangria?” “I don’t know.”). As the scene progresses, Goggins’ flirtatious gestures, such as blowing on a window and drawing a heart in the condensation, escalate the situation playfully.

Service Dogs

https://youtube.com/watch?v=watch?v=Ndxq_YqBMVs

This might just take the cake for me – my preferred type of humor revolves around animals acting out, so imagine a skit featuring service dogs trying to keep it together during an audience performance of a Tennessee Williams-style play, yet failing miserably. You’d have a dog rolling his eyes, another checking his watch, one holding peanut M&Ms, and even a few scanning the Playbill for the producers’ names, with some dogs even walking off… behaviors that are generally off-limits for dogs, except perhaps the last one. In this performance, Goggins portrays the lead actor alongside Gardner, who struggles to concentrate due to the unruly canine co-stars. Michael Longfellow steps in as the dog trainer, apologetically explaining, “I’m really sorry,” he says. “Please don’t take it personally. This is their inaugural experience with a terrible play.

Weekend Update

https://youtube.com/watch?v=watch?v=zP0mKoMFcow

As a movie critic, I found myself chuckling at some of the jokes in this week’s sketch, despite a few missteps with the Chicago pope and R-word humor. The bits that stood out for me were the ones poking fun at Rosa Parks’ underwear and planes crashing into the ocean.

One of my favorites was “Dianne, The Mom Who’s Only Read About New York on Facebook, Gives Tourist Tips,” featuring Heidi Gardner as a naive suburban mom. Her portrayal of a wide-eyed woman regaling us with unverified cautionary tales about New York City, often involving race in irrelevant contexts, had me in stitches. The way she went “white” (and later, “What was Moana?”) was hilarious.

Another sketch that tickled my funny bone was “A Guy Who Just Walked Into a Spiderweb on Trump’s Tariffs,” played by Mikey Day. His physical performance and frantic energy were spot-on, as was the absurdity of his character’s predicament. I found myself forgetting the setup for why he was there, which made the final “Should I still talk about tariffs?” line land particularly well.

The Deathly Diner

https://youtube.com/watch?v=watch?v=UsBk3QU2nW4

Parents Walton Goggins and Ashley Padilla decide to treat their children to a spooky restaurant within an amusement park, reminiscent of Medieval Times but tailored for Halloween. They seek the background story to enhance the experience, yet actors Bowen Yang and Ego Nwodim, playing servers, only vaguely hint at it being potentially their last meal there, leaving room for imagination. The duo’s comedic chemistry is on full display as they improvise a backstory on the fly.

Boss’s Bathroom

https://youtube.com/watch?v=watch?v=l_rUppDotm4

The show kicked off with an unusual segment titled “Tiny Baby Shoe,” which was also a potential standout moment. It concluded with Dan Bulla’s peculiar short, “Boss’s Bathroom.” This skit revolved around a newly promoted employee named Andrew Dismukes visiting his boss, Goggins, and his wife, Sarah Sherman. When Dismukes needed to use the bathroom, he was taken aback by the Squatty Potty in their bathroom, leading him to spend the rest of the evening grappling with the notion of his boss’s bowel movements. Admittedly, I haven’t seen comedy centered around that subject before, but I do encourage more toilet humor on SNL; I appreciated the visual gags like the bidet stream and the talking slug.

Cut for time

I’m grateful for Strong’s captivating portrayal of Jeanine Pirro, who playfully splashed wine on Jost during the cold open, and Jost’s enthusiastic reaction as Pete Hegseth, relishing every moment. He’s clearly enjoying these last episodes immensely.

• Not to get my news from Weekend Update, but… Joe Biden was on The View? Why??

• Sending love to Dick Splinter, North Dakota.

This week’s musical performer was Arcade Fire, led by Win Butler, serving as a powerful testament to the fact that past allegations of sexual misconduct can gradually fade away.

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2025-05-11 23:17