Ariana Grande Hosted Most Watched ‘SNL’ Episode Since 2021

Nearly 6 million viewers tuned into Saturday Night Live on Oct. 12 to watch Ariana Grande impersonate Celine Dion and Jennifer Coolidge, remix Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” into an unhinged bridesmaid speech, and a trauma-ridden Italian boy with a bowl cut. Full of music and chaos, it marked the most-viewed SNL episode since 2021, when Elon Musk hosted.

According to Nielsen data, per Variety, 5.6 million viewers tuned into the sketch-comedy show on the day that it aired. The episode included seven sketches plus two performances from musical guest Stevie Nicks, who performed “Edge of Seventeen” and “The Lighthouse.” Across social platforms, content from the episode brought in 516 million views, including 415 million from Grande’s sketches and Nicks’ performances.

Grande last hosted Saturday Night Live in March 2016, when she was also a musical guest. She returned to the show earlier this year to perform “We Can’t Be Friends (Wait For Your Love)” and “Imperfect For You” from her latest album, Eternal Sunshine. But even then, she found herself in two separate skits with host Josh Brolin.

The musician and star of the forthcoming Wicked film stuck to just the sketches this time around, joking in her opening monologue: “I am just hosting. No, I’m not going to make this about me, I’m just gonna have fun, take it easy and, yeah, just keep it lowkey.” A few seconds later, she was deep into a cabaret-inspired song and dance number that imitated the likes of Britney Spears and Gwen Stefani.

Grande is a theater kid; she just couldn’t help herself. The host and musical guest pairings that have to follow her episode have a high bar to clear. On Friday, Michael Keaton will host with Billie Eilish as musical guest. John Mulaney will return as host on Nov. 2, with Chappell Roan making her SNL debut as a musical guest.