SNL Skewers Hollywood, Race Relations With “Dylan McDermott Or Dermot Mulroney?”
The cringe-worthy expression “You all look the same to me” is a familiar barb in scenes about race and prejudice. But this week, Saturday Night Live flipped the idea on its head, not only by reversing the usual dynamic, but by applying it to a world that actually does thrive on similar, generic-looking people: Hollywood.
In the sketch “Dylan McDermott or Dermot Mulroney?”, contestants on “the hardest game show in the world” are simply asked to identify a picture of one of those actors- a confusing task for anyone. But adding a whole other level to the sketch, all of the contestants are black (including guest host Jamie Foxx).
I thought the SNL team did a great job of making the racial element clear, without ever coming right out and saying it (Although the “Djimon Hounsou” line at the end was a great, more blatant button). And even if this hadn’t been a factor in the sketch, there would have been solid jokes about the confusing interchangeability of these mid-level Hollywood films.
I was cracking up on the Rupert Everett line. Anyone whose had to sit through My Best Friend’s Wedding knows you spend half the movie confused about which one is the gay friend and which is the love interest.
What do you think of “Dylan McDermott or Dermot Mulroney?”
Harper's Bazaar" class="left" width="80px" height="80px" />