SNL Season 49: TVLine Readers Rank Every Episode, From Worst to Best
Each weekend, we here at TVLine highlight the best (and sometimes worst) of what Saturday Night Live has to offer, before turning it over to you, our loyal readers, to weigh in on each episode.
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With Season 49 now behind us, we’re revisiting how all 20 installments — featuring hosts Sydney Sweeney, Ayo Edebiri, Adam Driver, Emma Stone, Josh Brolin, Ryan Gosling and Timothée Chalamet, among others — fared, based on the average grade that you gave them.
Just how well did former cast members Pete Davidson, Kate McKinnon, Kristen Wiig and Maya Rudolph fare during their Season 49 hosting stints? What about Dua Lipa and Bad Bunny, both of whom pulled double duty as host and musical guest?
In the list below, using a proprietary mathematical algorithm, we have converted TVLine reader poll results into a score out of 100, then ordered the episodes from lowest to highest score. Scroll down to see how readers ultimately ranked each SNL Season 49 episode, then hit the comments and tell us if you’re surprised by any of the results.
20. RAMY YOUSSEF
AIRDATE: March 30, 2024
MUSICAL GUEST: Travis Scott
READER GRADE: 49/100 (“D”)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Youssef’s monologue taking swings at Biden
* Please Don’t Destroy getting high with Travis Scott (watch above)
19. SHANE GILLIS
AIRDATE: Feb. 24, 2024
MUSICAL GUEST: 21 Savage
READER GRADE: 50/100 (“D”)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Fake movie trailer touting the powers of gold Trump sneakers (watch above)
* Gillis sidestepping his SNL firing in the opening monologue
18. DUA LIPA
AIRDATE: May 4, 2024
MUSICAL GUEST: Dua Lipa
READER GRADE: 65/100 (“C”)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Jerry Seinfeld making an appearance on Weekend Update with a message for Ryan Gosling (watch above)
* Chloe Fineman spoofing JoJo Siwa
17. SYDNEY SWEENEY
AIRDATE: March 2, 2024
MUSICAL GUEST: Kacey Musgraves
READER GRADE: 68/100 (“C+”)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Sweeney joking about her nude scenes and Madame Web
* Sweeney solving crime through social media stalking (watch above)
* Sweeney trying to seduce a golden retriever
16. AYO EDEBIRI
AIRDATE: Feb. 3, 2024
MUSICAL GUEST: Jennifer Lopez
READER GRADE: 72/100 (“B-“)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Edebiri’s pre-show pep talk to the SNL Cast
* Edebiri referencing her controversial comments about JLo — and Instagram loving it!
* Trump town hall cold open… with Nikki Haley?
* Dune popcorn bucket song (watch above)
15. JACOB ELORDI
AIRDATE: Jan. 20, 2024
MUSICAL GUEST: Reneé Rapp
READER GRADE: 72/100 (“B-“)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Rachel McAdams making a cameo
* Alaska Airlines ad poking fun at imaginary “upgrades” (watch above)
* Please Don’t Destroy’s “Pimp My Ride” sketch (even though it was cut for time)
14. DAKOTA JOHNSON
AIRDATE: Jan. 27, 2024
MUSICAL GUEST: Justin Timberlake
READER GRADE: 73/100 (“B-“)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Johnson roasting Please Don’t Destroy — in their own sketch! (watch above)
* A Family’s Home Videos Binge Takes a Maury Povich-y Turn
13. JASON MOMOA
AIRDATE: Nov. 18, 2023
MUSICAL GUEST: Tate McRae
READER GRADE: 74/100 (“B-“)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Roman Empire song (watch above)
* Bowen Yang and Ego Nwodim Host Newark Airport’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
12. TIMOTHÉE CHALAMET
AIRDATE: Nov. 11, 2023
MUSICAL GUEST: boygenius
READER GRADE: 75/100 (“B”)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* James Austin Johnson’s Trump crashing the cold open spoofing a GOP debate
* SmokeCheddaDaAssGetta making his triumphant return (watch above)
11. BAD BUNNY
AIRDATE: Oct. 21, 2023
MUSICAL GUEST: Bad Bunny
READER GRADE: 77/100 (“B”)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* SNL going cameo crazy (again!) with Mick Jagger, Lady Gaga and more
* Bad Bunny becoming a Spanish king with an aversion to chickens
* Pedro Pascal stopping by to reprise his role as Tía (watch above)
10. EMMA STONE
AIRDATE: Dec. 2, 2023
MUSICAL GUEST: Noah Kahan
READER GRADE: 78/100 (“B”)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Bowen Yang’s George Santos getting expelled from Congress (watch above)
* Tina Fey and Candice Bergen welcoming Stone to the 5-Timers Club
* Stone and Yang getting naked in New York
9. NATE BARGATZE
AIRDATE: Oct. 28, 2023
MUSICAL GUEST: Foo Fighters
READER GRADE: 79/100 (“B”)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* SNL paying tribute to the late Matthew Perry
* Biden celebrating Halloween with Christopher Walken
* Please Don’t Destroy’s “Dawg Food” sketch (watch above)
8. ADAM DRIVER
AIRDATE: Dec. 9, 2023
MUSICAL GUEST: Olivia Rodrigo
READER GRADE: 81/100 (“B+”)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Driver playing the creepy childhood friend from your hometown (watch above)
* The actual Julia Stiles showing up to outdo Chloe Fineman’s Stiles impression
7. JAKE GYLLENHAAL
AIRDATE: May 18, 2024
MUSICAL GUEST: Sabrina Carpenter
READER GRADE: 82/100 (“B+”)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Gyllenhaal singing Boyz II Men
* Carpenter and Gyllenhaal teaming up for a violent Scooby Doo parody (watch above)
* Colin Jost and Michale Che swap jokes on Weekend Update
6. KATE MCKINNON
AIRDATE: Dec. 16, 2023
MUSICAL GUEST: Billie Eilish
READER GRADE: 83/100 (“B+”)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Eilish and McKinnon starting a tampon farm (watch above)
* McKinnon reprising “Whiskers R We”
5. PETE DAVIDSON
AIRDATE: Oct. 14, 2024
MUSICAL GUEST: Ice Spice
READER GRADE: 84/100 (“B+”)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Davidson’s Wired Autocomplete Interview spoof
* Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift making a surprise visit (!)
* Davidson addressing Israel-Hamas war in opening monologue
* “I’m Just Pete” song (watch above)
4. JOSH BROLIN
AIRDATE: March 9, 2024
MUSICAL GUEST: Ariana Grande
READER GRADE: 85/100 (“B+”)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Scarlett Johansson spoofing Katie Britt’s State of the Union rebuttal (watch above)
* Bowen Yang and Grande teaming up for an unhinged Moulin Rouge sketch
3. KRISTEN WIIG
AIRDATE: April 6, 2024
MUSICAL GUEST: Raye
READER GRADE: 86/100 (“A-“)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Wiig’s Aunt Linda roasting #Barbenheimer and The Bear
* Pilates horror movie trailer (watch above)
* Matt Damon, Paul Rudd, Ryan Gosling and more welcoming Wiig to 5-Timers Club
2. MAYA RUDOLPH
AIRDATE: May 11, 2024
MUSICAL GUEST: Vampire Weekend
READER GRADE: 89/100 (“A-“)
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Hot Ones with Beyoncé 2 (watch above)
* Rudolph slaying her Mother’s Day monologue
1. RYAN GOSLING
AIRDATE: April 13, 2024
MUSICAL GUEST: Chris Stapleton
READER GRADE: 95/100 (“A”)
*Season 49’s most-watched episode, and featuring the season’s most-viewed sketch on YouTube
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Caitlin Clark schooling Michale Che on Weekend Update
* Ryan gosling performing an ode to Ken to the tune of Taylor Swift’s “All Too Well”
* Another “Alien Abduction” sketch
* Beavis and Butt-Head spoof (watch above)
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