An unannounced guest appearance for both audiences in the studio and at home is the timeless concept of Saturday Night Live. And on February 11 and 17, 2017, the concept was presented again with a shocking guest star, Melissa McCarthy as Sean Spicer, White House press secretary.
According to The Atlantic, it took a few insults in a trademark shriek to make "SNL" audiences realize that person was McCarthy, in drag, who so far really captured Spicer's political character ranging between belligerence, alternative facts, and cinnamon gum. After the audience realized it was her, they immediately shouted boisterously.
Undoubtedly, it was a smart decision for "SNL" to cast McCarthy as Spicer. Initially perhaps a bit dubious, but the interpretation of McCarthy -- the intelligent jokes with political motives -- immediately left an impression for "SNL" performances, just like her other actor colleagues. Such as Tina Fey's "I can see Russia from my house!" as Sarah Palin, and Alec Baldwin's pursed mouth and disdainful look as Donald Trump.
From the beginning, the SNL skit scripting was remarkable, not only funny but also effective. Most of McCarthy's skits was about Spicer's hostile attitude towards reporters. As described by Time, in the first outing she sprayed journalists with a 'soapy' water gun for asking questions about the omission of the Jews from the White House's Holocaust Memorial Day Statement. After that, she promised to 'remain calm'. However, in the second outing, she used a leaf blower on a female journalist played by Cecily Strong after being asked about the murder rate statistics in Chicago.
In addition, she also quipped about Spicer's obsession toward cinnamon gum. Ivanka Trump was not excluded from her critic because McCarthy 'supported' people to buy Ivanka Trump's clothing line and also 'defended' the story about Bowling Green Massacre. Moreover, for the famous President Trump's travel ban, McCarthy used Barbie and Ken doll to explain to the reporters that only the blond is allowed in the US states. As reported by Variety, the "SNL" skits also criticized about the White House's decision to release a list of terrorist attacks which was believed to have been under-covered by mainstream media.
The most important thing was the response of the White House toward McCarthy's Spicer. According to BGR, Trump over the last few weeks have shown his displeasure toward "Saturday Night Live." However, no matter how irritated he was, the rating events showed otherwise, and the episode anchored by Alec Baldwin was the highest rated "SNL" episode in six years.