Watch Ryan Gosling and Kate McKinnon’s ‘Close Encounter’ ‘SNL’ sketch

Ryan Gosling returned to “SNL” this week in a cold open with “Barbie” co-star Kate McKinnon, reviving one of their most famous sketches, “Close Encounter,” in which they talk about being abducted by aliens creatures and their vastly different experiences on board. the spaceship.

The original sketch debuted eight years ago and featured Gosling and McKinnon, alongside Cecily Strong (it currently has 60 million views on YouTube). The actor also recreated this sketch when he presented for the second time six years ago. In every attempt at action through ‘Close Encounter’, Gosling has heroically tried to get through McKinnon’s piece of genius without breaking, each time failing. Endearingly, Gosling re-broke at least once during this period.

Bowen Yang and Mike Day played NSA researchers in tonight’s Cold Open. Day tells Gosling, McKinnon, and Sarah Sherman, “Now you’re all here because you experienced a verified alien abduction.”

As the camera pans to McKinnon, Gosling and Sherman, the crowd in Studio 8H screams with joy as the familiar scene plays out. McKinnon wears her character Colleen’s signature jeans, a messy brown wig and a dangling cigarette.

“It was wild,” Sherman says. “One minute we’re three friends on a camping trip and the next minute we’re citizens of the stars.” Gosling says, “And sir, before we begin, may I say something? I just realized I wore the same outfit last time I was here,” he says, touching his signature navy blue and tan cardigan. On the verge of breaking down, Gosling adds, “I just want you to know that I do have different clothes.”

Yang, dressed in a suit, asks, “How were you all brought aboard the vessel?” Sherman describes being hit by a warm, soft light. “And then we materialized on the spaceship in front of these two glowing beams,” she recalled, looking at Gosling.

Gosling, as Todd says, “Our clothes were gone, but we were wearing these comfortable robes made of transparent light,” he recalls, unable to suppress a smile.

McKinnon’s character, Colleen, sits with her legs apart, smoking a cigarette and tells a different story. “And you, Mrs. Rafferty?” Day asks. “Not much else for me. I was at the lake taking a whore’s bath… and out of nowhere I got sucked in by a giant vacuum cleaner.’ Mimicking a vacuum suction with full body strength, McKinnon adds, “And I land on the ship, still without pants, mind you…” She describes seeing her “old friends, the gray aliens with the big, stupid eyes.” .

McKinnon fumbles with her lines for a moment and recovers by saying, “And it hits me: I’ve been on this spaceship more times than I’ve been to the dentist,” she says, inhaling a drag on her cigarette.

The investigators ask what happened once on board the ship. Sherman describes the aliens teaching her a “universal language” of love. Gosling adds, “Their language is like a soothing, beautiful sound,” and then continues making the otherworldly sounds. McKinnon says, “This gets to my issue because these two are getting AMSR love vibes. Meanwhile, the Grays and I are doing our usual dance.”

McKinnon describes how the aliens poke her body, and in imitating the aliens she breaks character. “Anyway, then Todd showed up here!” she says. Gosling says he left the beams of light behind. “I got lost, sir, on my way to the bathroom.”

When asked how the aliens reacted when he entered the room, Gosling, on the verge of breaking point, says, “Like high schoolers meeting Taylor Swift.” They just lobbied me.” Gosling, completely broken, continues describing the aliens’ anatomy. “You know, they’re slippery there. Like a broken doorbell.”

Gosling says with a laugh, “When they saw I was packing a troll nose [in my see-through robe], they went for it.” McKinnon repeats this, emphasizing the ‘troll nose’. Day interrupts: “I’ve never heard the term ‘troll nose’ before.” And Gosling says, “You must be at a different bowling alley than us.”

Yang asks the group, “That we stop saying troll nose.” Gosling’s Todd asks, “During this or forever?”

Huddled in front of the camera, Gosling, McKinnon, Sherman, Yang and Day shout the famous seven words: “Live from New York, it’s Saturday night!”

With Gosling as host, Chris Stapleton stars as this episode’s musical guest.