Saturday Night Liveis finally returning this weekend with hostWoody Harrelsonafter a two-week hiatus. However, most fans still can’t get over the last episode hosted byThe Last of UsandThe MandalorianstarPedro Pascal. More specifically, the hilariousLast of Us-Mario Kartparodywhich saw Pascal take on the famous Italian plumber. NowSNLhas released a new behind-the-scenes video showing how they pulled this ambitious sketch off.
The Magic Behind the Mushroom Kingdom
The two-minute video will make you appreciate this already brilliant sketch even more. Cast memberMikey Day, who also played Luigi in the sketch, talked about how this was a spiritual successor to “Grouch” from Season 45 which combinedJokerwith theSesame Streetcharacter Oscar the Grouch. This sketch took the equally humorous approach of marrying the morbid post apocalyptic world ofLast of Uswith the vibrant world of Mario. Pascal’s gruff version of Mario escorts princess Peach across the dangerous Mushroom Kingdom like the actor’s character Joel does for Ellie inLast of Us. This vastly different franchises blended together surprisingly well and seeing all the different Easter eggs sprinkled throughout the sets is such a treat. One of the biggest Easter eggs is revealed by Day which is the Mansion where Mario and Peach find Luigi at being a reference to the hit gameLuigi’s Mansion. This is a subseries in theSuper Mariouniverse where Luigi hunts ghosts like he was a member of theGhostbusters.
There was also unsurprisingly so much special effects work involved and the VFX team only had three days to get everything finished in time for the show. That’s truly mind-blowing when you think about it and you’re able to easily see why most of the film crew consider this to be one of the most ambitious sketchesSNLhas ever done. However, even though there was so much blue screen work given the scale of the sketch, there were still a lot of sets that had to be built. Again, it will hurt your brain thinking about how this was all put together because everything just looks so hilariously perfect.
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2023: The Year of ‘Super Mario’ and ‘The Last of Us’
2023 is being set up as the year of the video game adaptation. The main reason why Pascal hosted SNL was to promoteThe Last of Uswhich is currently in the middle of its first season on HBO. This, of course, is based on the critically acclaimed PlayStation franchise of the same name. Six episodes in and it has easily become the best video game adaptation thanks to its brilliant direction, emotionally devastating writing, breathtaking themes, jaw-dropping horror, and beautifully tragic performances. This includes Pascal who perfectly embodies everything Joel is and so much more. New episodes premiere every Sunday at 9 PM ET.
Then there’sSuper Mariowho’s finally returning to the big screen after 30 years away this April in an animated film done by Illumination and Universal. LikeThe Last of Us, it looks like a stunning love letter to the franchise it’s based on. Funny enough, like thisSNLsketch,Mario Karthas a big role to play in the film with theiconic Rainbow Roadfeatured heavily in all the marketing.The Super Mario Bros. Moviehits theaters on July 20, 2025, withChris Prattvoicing Mario. However, after watching Pascal’s take on the character, many fans humorously want to see him play the character instead.
‘Saturday Night Live’ Returns This Week
SNL’s returning with three weeks of new episodes starting this Saturday, February 25 with Harrelson as the host and musical guestJack White. After that Super Bowl championTravis Kelcewill host on March 4 followed by breakoutWednesdayandScreamstarJenna Ortegaon March 11. Until then, you can view the BTS video ofSNL’sMario Kartsketch, as well as the sketch itself, down below.
