It was old-home night for comedian-actor Will Ferrell, who hosted the 51st season finale of Saturday Night Live, where he once worked for seven years.
But it wasn’t Will Ferrell who stepped out on stage and boasted that it was his sixth time hosting SNL amid giggles from some audience members who were in on the joke. It was Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith, who also happens to be an astounding Ferrell lookalike.
Seconds later, the genuine Ferrell popped out from backstage to interfere with the hijinks.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing? You’re not the host, I am!” Ferrell snapped.
“What the hell is wrong with you? He pushed me down backstage,” Ferrell told the audience. “And I fell, hard. Lorne [Michaels] had to give me mouth-to-mouth. Seriously, what are you even doing here?” Ferrell demanded, turning again to Smith.
Smith claimed he was the musical guest, but that was a fib, too, because it was Paul McCartney.
“DON’T clap for him,” pretend-mad Ferrell snapped at the audience as Smith stalked off. “He’s a bad guy.”
Later in the monologue Paul McCartney asked from the audience: “What do you think you’re doing here, Chad?”
Ferrell replied: “Look, I understand your confusion. Me and Chad do look a lot alike. But I’m Will. I’m hosting tonight.”
McCartney responded: “Nice try, Chad. Get back. Get back behind the drums where you belong.”
The near mirror-image buddies have a long history of milking their uncanny resemblance for laughs. Ferrell claimed more than a decade ago that Smith didn’t actually exist, but was a character created by the comedian. The two ended up having a “drum off” for charity so Smith could prove his bona fides.
Smith’s fun on the SNL stage didn’t end with the opening monologue. He stuck around and played drums for McCartney, who surprised the audience with a third performance after the evening’s goodnights.
