Live from New York, it's a pandemic "Saturday Night Live." NBC's long-running sketch show still went on, amid a spike in COVID-19 cases in the Big Apple, sans studio audience. The evening marked Paul Rudd's fifth time as host. The series announced the day-of change on Twitter. It also sent home several cast members, crew, planned special guests and musical guest Charli XCX as the latest variant of the coronavirus spread, according to a person with knowledge of the plans who was unauthorized to speak publicly.But Tom Hanks still appeared. "I came here from California, and if you think I was gonna fly 3,000 miles and not be on TV, well, you've got another thing coming," cracked Hanks, wearing a jacket emblazoned with a 5, signifying the number of times he's hosted. Hanks also welcomed former "SNL" cast member and writer Tina Fey, a fellow a member of the 5-time club.'SNL' will have no audience, smaller cast for Paul Rudd show, citing COVID spike; Charli XCX won't performLatest COVID updates:New York COVID cases 'going up exponentially'; 'SNL' will have no live audience"Tina, another 5-timer, thank you for joining me," Hanks said. "As you know, I started the 5-timers club.""Oh, like you started COVID," Fey joked of Hanks' early 2020 diagnosis, making him one of the earliest celebrities to go public with their COVID battle."Thank you for coming," Rudd said, addressing Fey and Hanks. "I'm extremely disappointed." But People magazine's choice for "Sexiest Man Alive" for this year could rest easy. He still received his hosting jacket, given to him by show cast member Kenan Thompson, who joked Rudd was getting the accomplishment for hosting "4.5 times."Thompson and Fey explained the show would proceed relying on sketches filmed earlier in the week and past favorite sketches. "It's gonna be a little bit like that new Beatles documentary," Rudd said, referencing "The Beatles: Get Back," directed by Peter Jackson. "A lot of old footage but enough new stuff that you're like, 'OK, yeah, I'll watch that.'" Contributing: Elise Brisco'They weren't breaking up':Here's why Peter Jackson's 'Get Back' defies Beatles history Source link
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