Anything can happen on live TV, and some of the most memorable, “What the hell?” moments in “Saturday Night Live”s 50-year history including a lip-sync screwup, political statements and even a host doing bizarre dancehall reggae cosplay.
Here’s some of the most talked-about performances that did not go on as planned:
Sinéad O’Conner, 1992
The Irish singer was booed — and subsequently banned — after tearing up a picture of the then pontiff, Pope John Paul II, and saying, “Fight the real enemy.” Audiences might not have realized exactly what she was protesting, but she was calling out the entire Catholic Church for its long, shameful history of covering up sexual abuse by priests. She was of course vindicated, repeatedly, in the years that followed.
Ashlee Simpson, 2004
The singer apologized profusely in the episode’s farewell after her lip-syncing on the song “Pieces of Me” was revealed thanks to a technical glitch. Unsure what to do in the moment, she went into an odd, impromptu hoedown that was later spoofed on “Family Guy,” except now the wrong track being played was the classic “Show Boat” song “Ol’ Man River.”
Adrien Brody introducing Sean Paul, 2003
The issue in this 2003 episode wasn’t with musical performer and Jamaican star Sean Paul, but the show’s host, Adrien Brody. “The Pianist” star donned a wig and a sketchy Jamaican accent to introduce the “Get Busy” singer. The Oscar winner, who is nominated again in 2025 for “The Brutalist,” has said that rumors of him being banned are not true. Regardless, he hasn’t been asked back to host in the more than 20 years since this happened.
Rage Against the Machine, 1996
Rage Against the Machine, a radically political band who routinely calls out corporate America, imperialism, racism and police killings, were booked on the same show hosted by Republican presidential candidate Steve Forbes. The band hung upside-down American flags from their amps, which were torn down before the cameras rolled. Producers didn’t stop them from delivering a blistering version of “Bulls on Parade,” without incident, but they were asked to leave the building before they could perform a second song. Here’s more details about what went down.
Nirvana, 1993
The hotter than hot Seattle band were supposed to perform their hit “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” but instead delivered the controversially titled track “Rape Me,” which they’d been specifically told not to play.
