Bill Burr, who hosted Saturday Night Live on October 10, 2020, caused a controversy with his cold open, which (among other things) criticized “white women” for their involvement in the “woke movement.” The stand-up comedian’s SNL monologue discussed a variety of topics in his signature cynical and rage-fuelled style, and divided audiences with its subject manner and delivery; he even caused a flurry of angry tweets from viewers at home who were hurt, offended, or simply in shock over the hateful comments about women, gay people, and people of color.

The cold open in question occurred in the second episode of Saturday Night Live season 46. The same episode also drew public attention for containing a humorous sketch in which Jim Carrey both impersonated Joe Biden and spoofed Jeff Goldblum’s iconic turn as Seth Brundle in David Cronenberg’s The Fly remake.

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Burr used derogatory language, referring to women as “b*****s,” and feigned admiration for how “white women” had “hijack[ed] the woke movement.” He also joked that “gays” didn’t deserve an entire pride month because their struggles were not, in his view, significant enough to warrant that length of attention. Various tweets condemned the comic’s jokes as being in poor taste. Some users pointed out the hypocrisy of a straight white male deciding who is and isn’t allowed participate in movement for social change:

At the heart of the criticism were charges that Burr was “punching down.” When a comic uses satire or humor to address a social inequality from the position of being at a disadvantage, that’s called “punching up” — but when the reverse occurs, an individual is reaffirming their own privilege by putting a marginalized group “in their place.” Burr, as a straight, white, successful, and able-bodied man, is the epitome of privilege; thus, him poking fun at women over the woke movement was seen as doubly-insensitive: not only rooted in the upsetting realities at the heart of the social justice movement, but it also deriving its comedy from dismissing and mocking women, whom few would argue have more social power than straight white men.

Burr is not inherently wrong for wanting to discuss a political topic in his cold open on SNL, and the comedian did raise some valid points; however, the manner by which he made his arguments may have detracted from any good intentions. If the goal was to spark strong reactions, though, he certainly succeeded in that regard. Along with the criticism, Burr has received praise for his unfiltered take:

For SNL the Twitter firestorm will likely be seen as a win regardless, since it at least means that the long-running comedy series is being talked about. This is also far from the first controversy that the show has weathered; the recent lambasting of Donald Trump has prompted reminders that SNL invited the current president to host the show in 2015, in a move that former cast member Taran Killam said, in 2017, “only grows more embarrassing and shameful as time goes on.”

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Sarah Bea Milner
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Sarah Milner is the Weekend Lead Editor for Screen Rant’s Film/Television features (SR Originals) division. She is a writer, editor, and folk musician. She often watches movies — sometimes she reviews them too.

A graduate of Trent University, Sarah’s MA thesis examines Frankenstein adaptations and their relationship with popular culture. She has a fierce love of all things “spooky,” and a deep appreciation for classic cinema.

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