Two stars of The Pitt were asked to be a part of a Saturday Night Live skit parodying the popular medical drama and the MAHA movement, but the decision didn’t get cleared in time.
Patrick Ball, who portrays Dr. Frank Langdon on the series, revealed that he and co-star Isa Briones wanted to appear in the viral SNL spoof alongside that week’s guest host, Harry Styles. Briones, 27, plays Langdon’s colleague, Dr. Trinity Santos.
Ball told the TODAY show that he got a call “late, late, midnight, the night before” SNL filmed its skit, which targeted Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s “Make America Healthy Again” movement.
“They were trying to get me in the skit, and then it just didn’t — we didn’t have time to go through the proper channels and get it cleared. So it didn’t work out,” he shared.
But the actor said there was a silver lining. He said the comedy series invited him to watch the sketch at creator Lorne Michaels’ office.
“So me and Isa got to go, and we got to see Lorne’s office with all the little index cards and the rundown and watch the show,” he said. “And then went to the after party, and we got to meet Harry Styles, and I watched Isa absolutely lose her freaking cool.
The viral SNL sketch took the mold of The Pitt but reshaped it to reflect the ideals of the MAHA movement. Within the “MAHA Hospital,” SNL cast member James Austin Johnson starred as RFK Jr., while Styles played the hospital’s main doctor, emulating lead star Noah Wyles.
“For people who love The Pitt, but can’t stand its phony liberal science,” said the trailer’s voiceover.
Reversing the politics of The Pitt, the sketch made facetious jabs at right-wing medical advice. In one instance, Styles calls a patient who is up to date on his vaccines a “loser.” In another, the fake RFK Jr. tells his hospital that he’s “proud” of them for treating patients with raw milk and energy healing.
Ball, who earned his breakout role with the HBO drama, called the sketch “amazing.” He also praised Styles for his performance.
“I have never seen an audience become so spellbound in my life. Like, he walked in, and people just went into a trance. It was unbelievable.”
The Pitt, now in its second season, has swept award shows and garnered rave reviews, becoming HBO’s most-watched original series this year.
