SNL's Jeremy Culhane Delivers a Harsh New Impression of Elon Musk in Latest Episode

Michael BoyleSun, November 8, 2026 at 6:47 AM UTC

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(Peacock/NBC)

Saturday Night Live has a new actor playing Elon Musk, and his performance is so much meaner than the last guy to play him.

In the latest episode’s Weekend Update, cast member Jeremy Culhane shows up as Elon Musk to address the midterm election results in Texas. Although the real Musk donated nearly half a billion dollars to Republican candidates, Texas voters still chose Democrats statewide by a clear margin.

Culhane played Musk as an aggressively awkward, stuttering dork; he repeatedly tries to posture as one of Colin Jost and Michael Che’s friends, but it’s clear the two aren’t having it.

“That was, like, an epic roast of me,” Culhane’s Musk says, when Jost points out that none of his election donations panned out. “Most vulgar. You know, that’s what I call an epic vulgar roast. And it’s time for a pounding.”

By “a pounding” Culhane means a fist bump, which a repulsed Jost half-heartedly reciprocates.

The script for this segment includes a ton of jokes at Musk’s expense, but the most brutal joke of all is the off-putting way Culhane delivers every single line. This is far and away one of the most contemptuous portrayals of a public figure SNL has delivered in a long time. It’s made even more biting by the knowledge that Musk himself once hosted the show in 2021; there seems to be little love lost between him and the SNL crew.

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Even SNL icon Mike Myers’ previous portrayal of Musk, which compared the DOGE founder to Dr. Evil, had less bite than this one.

At one point Culhane’s Musk asks Grok, the AI chatbot on X (owned by Musk), to do an “epic vulgar roast” of him.

Grok responds, “Elon Musk, you’re the worst thing South Africa has ever done. When you’re on TV, it feels like an episode of Hate on the Spectrum. Maybe if you have 100 more kids, one of them will talk to you.” Musk grew increasingly depressed as the roast went on.

This is Culhane’s second season as a cast member on SNL, and he’s already proven himself a great impressionist. He drew viral acclaim last season for his portrayal of right-wing pundit Tucker Carlson. Even that impression — where his Carlson laughs ghoulishly at the child death in Hamnet — feels nicer than Culhane’s take on Musk.

Compared to Culhane’s Musk, Carlson got off easy.

This story was originally published by Parade on Nov 8, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”