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Last night, December 20, Ariana Grande<\/a> returned to Studio 8H to host Saturday Night Live<\/em> for the second time<\/a> in as many years. During her monologue, Grande parodied Mariah Carey<\/a>\u2019s recently record-breaking<\/a> \u201cAll I Want for Christmas Is You\u201d and was joined by Bowen Yang, who is leaving the SNL<\/em> cast midway through his eighth season. She also appeared in sketches throughout the evening as an Elf on the Shelf, a dance instructor, and Macaulay Culkin\u2019s Kevin McCallister from Home Alone<\/em>.<\/p>\n In the \u201cRandom Duet Christmas Spectacular\u201d sketch, inspired by David Bowie and Bing Crosby\u2019s 1977 televised performance of \u201cPeace on Earth \/ Little Drummer Boy<\/a>,\u201d Grande played Katy Perry and Celine Dion. The show\u2019s cast members also impersonated Bob Dylan, Bad Bunny, Kate Bush, Yoko Ono, and Geese frontman Cameron Winter.<\/p>\n Making her first appearance as Saturday Night Live<\/em>\u2019s musical guest since 2011, Cher<\/a> performed two songs from her 2023 Christmas album titled, simply, Christmas<\/em>. She was flanked by backup dancers for \u201cDJ Play a Christmas Song\u201d and covered Chuck Berry\u2019s \u201cRun Rudolph Run.\u201d<\/p>\n Saturday Night Live<\/em>\u2019s 51st season has featured performances from Doja Cat<\/a>, Sabrina Carpenter<\/a>, Brandi Carlile<\/a>, Olivia Dean<\/a>, Dijon<\/a>, and Lily Allen<\/a>, among others. Bad Bunny<\/a> hosted the season premiere. Stranger Things<\/em><\/a> star Finn Wolfhard will host SNL<\/em>\u2019s first episode of the new year alongside musical guest A$AP Rocky<\/a> on January 17, coinciding with the latest planned release date<\/a> for Rocky\u2019s new album, Don\u2019t Be Dumb<\/em>.<\/p>\n This year, Grande shared the deluxe version<\/a> of her 2024 album, Eternal Sunshine<\/em><\/a>, and joined the cast<\/a> of Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro\u2019s new Meet the Parents<\/em> movie. She performed alongside her Wicked<\/em> co-star Cynthia Erivo at the 2025 Oscars<\/a>, where she was also nominated<\/a> for Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of Glinda. Grande will kick off her first tour<\/a> in over six years in June 2026.<\/p>\n