During the early days of the 2024 TV schedule, Sydney Sweeney hosted an episode of SNL's 49th Season. This gig came right as her film Immaculate was coming out and on the heels of a successful, yet rumor-filled, year. So, in her monologue on the sketch show, she decided to address it all in a way that made some people “a little nervous.” However, she absolutely “loved” poking fun at her celebrity status.
Sydney Sweeney was part of Vanity Fair’s Hollywood Issue, and during her interview for it, she was asked about Saturday Night Live. During her monologue, she addressed a ton of the headlines written about her over the last year, and I have to imagine doing that is nerve-wracking. It turns out, it was for those around her. However, she was here for it all, as she explained:
I loved it. I actually had to push for a lot of it. Some people were a little nervous about it, but in real life, I’d like to say I’m a funny person. And sometimes I wish that I could address more [things with] my ‘Syd’ self, but I find that with social media there’s such a lapse in how things are communicated. It’s hard to get things across in the way that you intend to—they can be misconstrued. So being able to do it onstage in very Syd fashion, I loved it. I felt like I was taking the power back.
The monologue opened with Sweeney saying people likely recognize her from the critically acclaimed Euphoria and the sneaky box office success Anyone But You, which was followed by her joking that they didn’t see her in the brutally reviewed Madame Web. She then explained that she was excited for “everyone to get to know the real me,” poking fun at the various things she’s done many times in projects like Euphoria:
But tonight I’m excited for everyone to get to know the real me. I feel like people only see me as the girl on TV who screams, cries and has sex – sometimes, it’s all three at the same time. But I’m more than that.
On top of that, she joked about the viral news regarding a Trump party and her plan to get into acting, humorously noting that her Plan B was to “show boobs.” Sweeney even addressed the viral claims that she was having an affair with Glen Powell. She truly got into it all, and it was done in a funny and self-aware way, as you can see below:
Saturday Night Live Season 50 is currently airing, and you can watch new episodes every Saturday at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBC or with a Peacock subscription.
Truly, she didn’t hold back, and I can see why her team was nervous. Normally, celebrities don’t say much directly about rumors they’re involved in. However, I love that Sydney Sweeney really leaned into it all. Plus, I totally agree with her that doing this was a way for her to take her power back while showing off her genuine sense of humor.
Overall, it really felt like the actress was having a ton of fun on that stage, and her sense of humor got to shine. It’s also on-brand too, because this isn’t the first time she’s poked fun at herself and her image specifically. For example, last month she used her sense of humor, gorgeous looks and status as a sex symbol to do a hilarious ad for Dr. Squatch Natural Body Wash.
On a more serious note, it seems like Sweeney always finds a positive spin on the comments she receives about her body and her work, and it’s one of the reasons why I adore her.
Now, I can’t wait to see what she does next – and here’s hoping that includes a fun comedy or another episode of SNL!