It was the first episode of Saturday Night Live after the 2024 presidential election. The air was thick with whatever you want to call that mixture of shock, exhaustion, and "here we go again." Most people expected the cold open to be a somber affair or a direct political autopsy. Instead, the show went into full self-preservation mode—tongue firmly in cheek. The cast stood in a line, deadpan, pledging their undying loyalty to the new administration.
Then came the jump.
When Dana Carvey bounced onto the stage in a black "Dark MAGA" hat, he wasn't playing Joe Biden this time. He was Dana Carvey playing Elon Musk on SNL, and honestly, it was one of the weirder moments in a season already defined by its revolving door of high-profile cameos. Carvey didn't just walk out; he did that high-knee, arms-flailing jump Musk performed at the Butler, Pennsylvania rally. It was a physical impression before it was a vocal one.
"Check it out—dark MAGA—but seriously, I run the country now," Carvey’s Musk remarked.
The Impression That Split the Internet
Look, Dana Carvey is a legend. The guy gave us George H.W. Bush and Ross Perot. He’s the gold standard of mimicry. But his take on the Tesla CEO was... divisive. It wasn't the polished, lived-in impression we’re used to seeing from him. It felt frantic. He leaned heavily into the "Dark MAGA" bit, telling the audience that America would be like one of his rockets: "super cool and super fun, but there's a slight chance it could blow up and everybody dies."
Some people loved the chaotic energy. Others? Not so much.
📖 Related: Al Pacino Angels in America: Why His Roy Cohn Still Terrifies Us
Musk himself was in the "not so much" camp. He didn’t wait long to fire back on X (formerly Twitter). He basically said that "Dana Carvey just sounds like Dana Carvey." He didn't stop there, either. He called the show "increasingly out of touch with reality" and claimed it was "dying slowly for years." It’s a bit ironic considering Musk hosted the show himself back in 2021, but the relationship between the billionaire and the NBC institution has clearly soured.
Why Carvey Struggled With the Voice
You’d think a guy who can nail basically any voice in history would have a Musk impression in his back pocket. Apparently not. On his Superfly podcast with David Spade, Carvey was surprisingly candid about the whole thing.
"I can't do Elon Musk very well," he admitted.
He described the voice as a moving target—an "incredible accent" that’s a cocktail of South Africa, Canada, and Pennsylvania. To Carvey, it’s got bits of Australian and British in there too, but it doesn't land firmly in any one camp. It’s a mumbling, tech-bro cadence that is notoriously hard to pin down without falling into a generic "foreign" sound.
Interestingly, Carvey even continued to work on the voice during an appearance on Real Time with Bill Maher in March 2025. He told Maher, "I don't really do it yet, but I'm working on it." He then proceeded to riff on the idea of going to Mars because "we can't sustain life on planet Earth," trying to catch that specific, halting "mm-hmm, mm-hmm" rhythm that Musk uses.
👉 See also: Adam Scott in Step Brothers: Why Derek is Still the Funniest Part of the Movie
The Mike Myers Factor
Here is something a lot of casual viewers missed. Carvey wasn’t the only SNL titan to step into the Silicon Valley shoes. Later in Season 50, another alum, Mike Myers, returned to take over the role for three episodes.
Having two different Wayne's World stars play the same tech mogul in one season is peak 50th-anniversary chaos. While Carvey’s version was high-energy and jumpy, Myers took a different approach, though the show eventually leaned back into the "hot jacked Trump" and "DOGE" (Department of Government Efficiency) jokes that dominated the late 2024 and early 2025 news cycles.
The Chloe Fineman Drama
We can't talk about Elon Musk and SNL without mentioning the collateral damage. Shortly after the Carvey sketch aired and Musk started his "SNL is dying" tirade, cast member Chloe Fineman posted (and then deleted) a video on TikTok.
She wasn't holding back.
Fineman revealed that she was the cast member Musk reportedly made cry during his 2021 hosting gig. She described him "pawing through" her script and telling her, "I didn't laugh once." It added a layer of real-world tension to the sketches. When Carvey mocks Musk on screen, it’s not just political satire; for the cast, it feels like a response to a guy who was, by their accounts, a pretty difficult guest to work with.
✨ Don't miss: Actor Most Academy Awards: The Record Nobody Is Breaking Anytime Soon
Breaking Down the Viral Success
Why did this specific sketch go so viral? It wasn't just the impression. It was the timing.
- The Post-Election Heat: Everyone was waiting to see how SNL would pivot.
- The Visual Gags: The jumping and the "Dark MAGA" hat provided instant meme fodder.
- The Power Dynamic: By 2025, Musk wasn't just a car guy; he was a central figure in the incoming administration.
- The Alum Power: Seeing Carvey and James Austin Johnson (who plays a "hot jacked" Trump) together is a comedy nerd's dream.
What This Means for SNL’s Future
SNL is currently navigating a weird space where the actual news is often more absurd than the sketches. By bringing in legends like Carvey, Maya Rudolph, and Andy Samberg, the show is leaning on nostalgia to keep its head above water.
But there’s a risk there.
When Musk says the show is "out of touch," he’s speaking to a specific segment of the audience that feels the show has become a political megaphone rather than a comedy variety hour. Whether you agree with him or not, the numbers show that the "Dana Carvey Elon Musk SNL" moment was a massive traffic driver, proving that even if people claim the show is dying, they’re still watching—if only to see who gets roasted next.
Key Takeaways for Comedy Fans
If you're watching these clips back, look for the subtle things Carvey is trying to do. He’s not trying to be a vocal clone. He’s trying to capture the vibe of a man who feels he suddenly "runs the country."
- Watch the physicality: The jumping is a direct reference to the Butler rally.
- Listen for the "mm-hmm": Carvey added this later as he refined the voice.
- The "Rocket" metaphor: This is the core of the show's critique—the idea of "high risk, high reward" applied to governance.
If you want to see the evolution of this impression, compare the November 9, 2024, cold open with Carvey's appearance on Bill Maher’s show in early 2025. You can literally hear a professional comedian "writing" the character in real-time, moving from a caricature to something a bit more nuanced.
For those interested in the behind-the-scenes history of these sketches, the SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night documentary series offers a deeper look at how the show handles these high-pressure political transitions. It’s worth a watch to see how they manage to get these guest stars in and out of the building without the scripts leaking to the press every week.