SNL's cold open makes Merrick Garland a whip-cracking legal hero and nods to Tyre Nichols

Forget about the "little papers." Justice for Tyre Nichols.
 By 
Chase DiBenedetto
 on 
Saturday Night Live cast member Mikey Day impersonates Merrick Garland standing at a podium.
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SNL's cold open had the cast on the hunt for the infamous "classified government documents." Don't worry everyone, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland (Mikey Day) is on the case.

This week's Saturday Night Live, hosted by actor Michael B. Jordan, joined the comedic forces of cast members Day, Kenan Thompson, Ego Nwodim, and Bowen Yang, who step up to the press podium to relay an unspoken truth of government officials of past and present: they're all a little incompetent.

Buttressed by humorously timed whip-cracking noises invoking the great TV procedurals of the past, Day plays a shakey but determined Garland. "I may look like I was born in a library, but there's something you should know: Merrick Garland don't play."

The sketch ended with a more serious message, though: justice for the Memphis police killing of Tyre Nichols. "When we're done playing with these little papers," Thompson's character says, "we're going to head down to Memphis and make sure justice is served down there too, right?" Day's Garland responds, "I sincerely hope so."

Topics SNL

Chase sits in front of a green framed window, wearing a cheetah print shirt and looking to her right. On the window's glass pane reads "Ricas's Tostadas" in red lettering.
Chase DiBenedetto
Social Good Reporter

Chase joined Mashable's Social Good team in 2020, covering online stories about digital activism, climate justice, accessibility, and media representation. Her work also captures how these conversations manifest in politics, popular culture, and fandom. Sometimes she's very funny.


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