Ariana Grande returned to Studio 8H on December 20, 2025, for a special holiday edition of Saturday Night Live. Hosting for the third time, Grande was joined by musical guest Cher, who made her first performance appearance on the show since 1987. The night also marked the final episode for longtime cast member Bowen Yang, who shared emotional moments on stage with his Wicked co-star.
Ariana Grande’s holiday opening monologue
The episode started with Grande immediately addressing a question many fans had. In her opening monologue, she joked about whether she would bring back popular characters from her previous hosting stints.
“The last time I hosted was a year ago, and so many people have been asking me if I’ll revisit any of my sketches from last time, like, you know, Domingo,” Grande said. “But I told them, ‘I don’t think so. When something is perfect, it doesn’t need a sequel. What? That’s why I just finished filming Meet the Parents 4.’”
Grande then launched into a holiday-themed song, a spoof of Mariah Carey’s All I Want for Christmas Is You. She sang about the stress of shopping for relatives you barely know, with lyrics like, I don’t know what to get for Christmas for my cousin’s boyfriend Steve. The monologue took a heartfelt turn when Bowen Yang joined Grande on stage, receiving a huge applause from the audience. Yang, appearing emotional, offered gift suggestions and shared a warm moment referencing their work together on Wicked: For Good.
Fan-favorite sketches from the Christmas show
Grande showcased her skills in a series of sketches that blended holiday cheer with classic SNL humor. In Elf on the Shelf Support Group, she played a pitiful elf named Twinkle Butter who had been ripped in half by a family cat. The sketch featured elves sharing their traumatic experiences in high-pitched, helium-modulated voices, with Mikey Day’s elf revealing he was posed in compromising positions with a Barbie doll.
A Home Alone parody offered a darkly funny alternate ending to the classic film. Grande played Kevin McCallister, but when the family returns home, they accidentally trigger the booby traps, leading to a gory scene where Bowen Yang’s character has his arms chainsawed off. In Dancing 101, Grande and Marcello Hernández played haughty dance instructors whose odd choreography led to one of the night’s standout lines. When a student questioned if a dance move meant Grande wasn’t vaccinated, she deadpanned, You can’t ask me that in RFK’s America.
The Love Is Blind parody featured Grande as a contestant shocked to discover her fiancé was the literal Grinch, played by Mikey Day. At the show’s reunion, the couple revealed they were expecting a baby, showing a sonogram of a Baby Grinch standing up.
Cher’s musical return to SNL after 38 years
Cher took the SNL stage as a musical guest for the first time in nearly four decades. Her last performance on the show was in November 1987, when Candice Bergen hosted. For this episode, Cher performed two Christmas songs: DJ Play a Christmas Song and Run Rudolph Run. She was joined for her second number by Captain Kirk Douglas and the Saturday Night Live Band.
Grande introduced Cher’s second performance by briefly reprising her Antonio character from a Season 50 sketch. Cher’s appearance was highly anticipated, as she had only made brief cameos on the show since her 1987 performance, including a spot on Weekend Update in 1992 and a performance at the SNL 50th Anniversary Special.
Bidding farewell to Bowen Yang
The night was emotionally charged as it served as the final episode for Bowen Yang. Yang, who started as a writer in 2018 and became a cast member in 2019, is leaving after seven seasons. His departure was acknowledged throughout the show. During Weekend Update, former cast member Aidy Bryant made a surprise appearance alongside Yang to reprise their Trend Forecasters characters.
The final sketch of the night, Delta Lounge, was designed as Yang’s farewell. He played an airport lounge employee working his last shift on Christmas. In the sketch, Yang’s character shared his feelings about leaving, stating, I just feel so lucky that I ever got to work here. And I just wanted to enjoy it for a little bit longer. Especially the people. I’ve loved every single person who works here because they’ve done so much for me.
The sketch ended with a special sendoff as Ariana Grande and Cher joined Yang to sing Please Come Home for Christmas. After the episode, Yang posted on Instagram, thanking Grande for sending me off in the dreamiest way I could imagine.
Weekend Update highlights and cold open
The Weekend Update segment featured the traditional Christmas Joke Swap, though with a twist. Michael Che told Colin Jost they weren’t doing the bit this year, then proceeded to read a series of harsh jokes he had written for Jost to deliver. The jokes targeted Jost’s wife, Scarlett Johansson, referencing menopause and making a quip about actress Jenna Ortega.
The cold open featured James Austin Johnson delivering another installment of his Donald Trump impression. The sketch addressed the recent Epstein files release, with Trump joking about putting his name on buildings because we had to take it off of so many files. He also announced the invention of his own Patriot Games for high school athletes, asking, What’s the best way to distract from the Epstein files? I know, invite a bunch of teenagers to my house.
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How to watch the episode
The episode aired live on December 20, 2025, at 11:30 PM ET/8:30 PM PT on NBC. For viewers without cable, the episode is available to stream on Peacock and through live TV services like DIRECTV STREAM. Peacock makes new episodes available to stream in full on Sunday mornings following the live broadcast.
Saturday Night Live is now on its winter break. The show will return for the second half of Season 51 on January 17, 2026. The first episode of the new year will be hosted by Finn Wolfhard with musical guest A$AP Rocky.
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