Donald Trump and political officials seen in the Trump Tower lobby in NYC

WATCH 'Saturday Night Live' Spoof Donald Trump During Cold Open

Home / Videos / WATCH 'Saturday Night Live' Spoof Donald Trump During Cold Open

By Kristin Myers on April 2, 2023 at 4:00 PM PDT

On Saturday night, "Saturday Night Live" decided to joke about the newly indicted former U.S. President Donald Trump.

On Thursday night, the former POTUS was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury on more than thirty counts related to business fraud. This is the first time in U.S. history that a U.S. president – current or former – has faced criminal charges.

The SNL cast couldn't help but take on the historical moment by spoofing the event during the cold open, which featured James Austin Johnson as Donald Trump.

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WATCH 'Saturday Night Live' Parody Newly Indicted Donald Trump During Cold Open

In a six-minute sketch, James Austin Johnson as Donald Trump opens the video by quoting Taylor Swift and the lyrics of her hit song “Anti-Hero,” saying, “It’s me. Hi. I’m the problem. It’s me.”

“Well, folks, it happened, I got indicted, or as I spell it, indicated,” Johnson said, referring to Trump’s viral typo. “Frankly, it’s time that I come clean and admit that I broke the law and go quietly to prison.” He pauses for a moment before adding, “April fools!”

“That was a prank. I was doing a Jim from Office,” he continued, drawing more laughter from the audience. “But make no mistake, what the radical left Democrats are doing to me is worse than any crime I have ever committed, and I’ve committed a lot. Close to 34.”

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Trump admitted that he needs money from his supporters “more than ever,” before he introduced the new album that he is producing to raise money.

“Now you may have seen I’ve been opening my rallies with my wonderful song, ‘Justice for All,’ which I performed with the J6 choir. That’s a very real thing. Very disturbing,” he continued. “It was the No. 1 downloaded song. We beat ‘Flowers’ by Miley, which as we all know, is about Liam.”

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James Austin Johnson Attempts To Sing As Donald Trump During 'SNL' Cold Open

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“My song raked in so much cash, I thought, why stop there?” he said before introducing his new album called “Now That’s What I Call Me Legal Defense Fund” AKA Trump Bops. After attempting to sing, Trump continued to explain that the album featured “30 classic covers… all horrible.”

Trump said that the album was created to help “your favorite president to defend our movement, and mostly myself, from the evil Manhattan Daw,” reading the District Attorney abbreviation D.A. as one word.

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Later on in the sketch, Trump brings out performers Don King (played by “SNL” veteran Kenan Thompson), as they attempt “Islands in the Stream,” and son Don Jr. (played by Mikey Day), as they try to perform a duet of “Boy’s a Liar.”

Trump ended the musical sketch by telling the audience, “I’ll see you on Tuesday. Will be wild.” Many fans praised Johnson’s parody of Trump. “He really has perfected the body language, mannerisms, and speech pattern. crazy good,” one fan commented. “His impression is top-notch. Everything — his appearance, his mannerisms, and his voice, is spot on!!! Very entertaining,” another follower agreed.

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Fans Have Nothing But Love For SNL's Cold Open Parody Of The Former POTUS!

Former US President Donald Trump
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“We have waited YEARS for the moment when we would have SNL & Trumps indication cold open! And the fact that it airs on 4/1?! MARVELOUS!” another follower wrote, referring to the fact that the episode aired on April Fool’s Day.

“I love Alec's impersonation, but THIS is just so good. Not just an attempt at sounding like Trump, but a very accurate impression,” another fan comment, referring to actor Alec Baldwin, who used to impersonate Donald Trump on “Saturday Night Live.”

“Hard to prank on someone who is already patently ridiculous but SNL manages to nail it,” another fan commented. “James Austin Johnson’s Trump voice is extremely accurate. His impersonation is the best,” another follower wrote.

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“When I first heard him a long time ago, my mom was watching him doing his Trump from another room so I didn't see, so I asked 'ugh what did the orange say this time' she had to explain to me it wasn't actually Trump that's how accurate his voice is,” another fan shared.

“And he just keeps improving too. I wasn't sold on it at the beginning but if you compare now and his first time on SNL as Trump, there's such a huge improvement,” another follower replied.

With Trump's indictment news only heating up, James Austin Johnson will have plenty more time to perfect his Trump impression for the next parody that is sure to come in the future!

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