Eddie Murphy Reprises Many Of His Beloved Characters On 'SNL'

Eddie Murphy was on fire hosting ‘Saturday Night Live’

Last night’s episode of Saturday Night Live was as good as it gets. It was hosted by old cast member, Eddie Murphy, who hasn’t been on the show in 35 years and delivered a ton of guest stars along the way. Things got started with surprise guests Tracy Morgan, Dave Chappelle, and Chris Rock during the opening monologue — and the show only got better from there.

Taking the stage of NBC’s Studio 8H, Murphy told SNL viewers: “This is the last episode of 2019. But if you’re black, this is the first episode since I left back in 1984.” He also updated fans on his life now, saying, “I have 10 kids now — 11 if you count Kevin Hart,” all of whom flew to New York to see their father host.

With Lizzo as the musical guest and Murphy bringing back his classics (he joined the show at just 19 years old), including Buckwheat, Gumby, and Mr. Robinson, fans almost felt like they were watching the show during its glory days — and everyone was very much here for it.

Murphy nailed his skit as the adorably grumpy Mr. Robinson, where this week’s lesson was on gentrification, which the comedian described as “a magic trick. White people pay a lot of money and then poof, all the black people are gone.” Classic.

He also reprised everyone’s favorite character Buckwheat, this time on the Masked Singer where he belted tunes, including “Dine, Teal, Dawibba,” “I Chot Da Chariff,” and “Tinga Nadies” in an octave only Buckwheat can pull off.

Murphy also interrupted Weekend Update anchors, Colin Jost and Michael Che, bringing back his beloved Gumby character. Of course, he managed to throw in his famous catchphrase, “I’m Gumby, damn it,” and stuck around long enough to roast Jost and Che. “I’ve passed kidney stones with more personality than the two of you,” Murphy told them. “Face it, kid, the two of you together couldn’t Velcro my sneakers.”

During a segment called the “Holiday Baking Championship,” Murphy managed to slip in a swear word, saying “We can still win this shit,” then put his hand over his mouth following the slip of the tongue.

Murphy’s old character Velvet Jones finally turned up in a Black Jeopardy sketch, with host Kenan Thompson saying, “Black Jeopardy. The only Jeopardy that starts sometime between eight and nine o’clock.” Jones introduces himself and jokes that he helps ladies start their own business making up to $1,500 a week with his No. 1 best-seller, “I Want To Be A Ho.”

It was a night of many laughs and a reminder that the classic characters (and stars who play them) will never go out of style.