17 Of The Most Wild, Unbelievable Things That Ever Happened On "SNL"

Ashlee Simpson's little dance after she got caught lip-synching lives rent-free in my mind, tbh.

We asked members of the BuzzFeed Community to share the most wild, unbelievable moments in Saturday Night Live history, and y'all, they did NOT disappoint. Here are 17 of the most controversial ones:

1. When Ashlee Simpson got caught lip-synching during her performance of "Autobiography," did a very awkward dance, and ran offstage:

NBC

"Instead of 'Autobiography,' her prerecorded track of 'Pieces of Me' started playing. She didn't know what to do, so she did this awkward dance and walked offstage before the show cut to a commercial."

—chelseasometimes23

You can watch it all go down below or on YouTube:

youtube.com

2. When Kristen Stewart hosted and accidentally dropped the f-bomb in her monologue:

NBC

—Kevin Dix

You can watch the whole monologue below or skip to 4:23 to see it all go down:

youtube.com

3. When Elvis Costello stopped playing "Less Than Zero" 15 seconds into the song and performed "Radio, Radio" — a song that NBC had objected to — instead:

NBC

"He was then banned from appearing on SNL until he made his triumphant return playing the same song backed by the Beastie Boys years later! THAT was punk rock in its purest meaning."

—Brian B.

You can watch a clip of the performance below or on YouTube:

youtube.com

4. When Kanye West went on an unexpected pro-Trump rant at the end of the episode he appeared on and was ultimately cut off:

NBC

"In 2018, he wore a MAGA hat and talked about his public support of Trump while the audience booed and cast members — including host Adam Driver — were visibly irritated in the background. While his whole speech didn't air on TV, you can get a quick refresher of what was said and shared by Chris Rock — who'd been in the show's audience that night — on Instagram here."

—swifty_girl

You can watch the clip for yourself below or on YouTube and see Chris Rock's Instagram stories here:

youtube.com

5. When Charles Rocket dropped the f-bomb during a sketch, resulting in him getting fired in the middle of the season:

NBC

"The show was already in limbo, and that mistake cost half the jobs on the show, including Rocket's. SNL would've tanked entirely were it not for Eddie Murphy."

—colleend9

You can watch the snippet of this sketch below or on YouTube:

youtube.com

6. When Sinead O’Connor ripped up a picture of Pope John Paul II during her performance of Bob Marley's "War":

NBC

—karas4e071572a

You can watch her whole performance of "War" below or skip to 2:50:

NBC

7. When James Franco accidentally squirted fake blood straight into Leslie Jones' mouth during the "Gift Wrap" sketch:

NBC

"Jones spent the entire skit trying not to throw up 😂."

—shelleynicole

You can watch the whole sketch below or skip to 1:54:

youtube.com

8. When Martin Lawrence went off script during his monologue, sharing his personal experiences and opinion on women's hygiene and genitals:

NBC

—murrays3

Because of network policy, this part of the monologue has been edited out of reruns of the episode since it originally aired in 1994. Instead, the following graphics are displayed explaining what occurred and calling it a "frank and lively presentation" that "nearly cost us all our jobs." You can view the video on the NBC website or read the transcript from the original monologue here.

NBC

—matthewschonmorgan

9. When Rage Against the Machine tried to perform with upside-down American flags hanging from their amps and were escorted out of the building immediately after their first song:

NBC

"The upside-down flags were meant to be a protest of the show's host that week: then–presidential candidate Steve Forbes. The crew removed the flags before the show went live, but the band was not invited back in to perform a second song or seen onstage for the goodbyes at the end of the show."

—miss_meggin

You can watch their performance below:

NBC / Via Facebook: video.php

10. When Adrien Brody decided to improvise his introduction of musical guest Sean Paul by wearing dreadlocks, speaking in patois, and spewing a bunch of Jamaican stereotypes:

NBC

—Cheersavl

You can watch his introduction below starting at 4:54:

youtube.com

11. When Buck Henry hosted an entire episode of SNL with a bandaged head because John Belushi accidentally cut him with a sword during a "Samurai Stockbroker" sketch:

NBC

—Angelica Martinez

You can enjoy the whole sketch on NBC.com or watch the moment where it all goes wrong below:

NBC

12. When Fred Armisen did an impression of then–New York Gov. David Paterson on "Weekend Update" that essentially made fun of him for being blind:

NBC

"During the segment, Armisen squinted and was unable to do basic tasks, seemingly due to his inability to see. According to the New York Times, the governor's office issued a statement about the impression, saying 'this particular Saturday Night Live skit unfortunately chose to ridicule people with physical disabilities and imply that disabled people are incapable of having jobs with serious responsibilities.'"

—Angelica Martinez

You can watch the original "Weekend Update" segment on NBC.com AND the updated 2010 impression in which Paterson himself joins Armisen onstage to comment on it:

NBC

13. When Fear caused a bit of a riot during their performance and were cut off mid-song with a commercial break for ~fear~ that they'd seriously damage the equipment:

NBC

"Fear hosted the Halloween episode in 1981 thanks to the help of cast member John Belushi getting them in the door at 30 Rock. They performed offensive songs — including the anti–New York song 'New York’s Alright If You Like Saxophones'; had a mosh pit that destroyed the set; and continuously used vulgar language. Concerned they'd destroy the equipment in the studio, the crew cut to a commercial when they began playing 'Let's Have a War.'"

—Evelina Zaragoza Medina

You can watch their whole performance below or on YouTube:

NBC

14. When Chevy Chase and Richard Pryor did a "Word Association" job interview sketch in which both their characters said racial slurs back and forth, including Chase saying the n-word:

NBC

Chase and Pryor notoriously didn't care for each other IRL, either, and it shows.

—angelusgirl

You can watch the sketch on NBC.com:

NBC

15. When SNL Executive Producer Dick Ebersol had the audience vote on whether or not they should keep Andy Kaufman on the show...and fans voted him out:

NBC

"Kaufman's early appearances on the first couple of seasons of SNL left people wondering what planet he was from."

—Brian B.

You can watch one of the voting videos on NBC.com and get a little taste of Kaufman's unique comedy style in the video below:

NBC

16. When Jenny Slate made a splash in her very first episode by accidentally dropping an f-bomb:

NBC

"It was rumored for a while that the slipup during the 'Biker Chick Chat' was what got her fired from the show, but Slate explained that it was because she wasn't a good fit. It's good to see she's doing a lot more for herself now."

—ursulabuffay

You can watch the moment it all happens below or on YouTube:

youtube.com

17. And finally, when Cypress Hill started their performance of "We Ain't Goin' Out Like That" by smoking a joint live on air:

NBC

"Not only did DJ Muggs smoke weed on national TV, but the band also trashed their instruments at the end of their performance. Safe to say, it wasn't a huge surprise when Lorne Michaels didn't welcome them back on the show."

—Angelica Martinez

You can watch their performance below:

Facebook: video.php

Did we miss any more wild and controversial SNL moments? Let us know in the comments below!

Note: Some submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.