After joking in a TV interview that he would want Brad Pitt to portray him on Saturday Night Live, Dr. Anthony Fauci‘s wish came true on this week’s episode.
In the second edition of SNL from home, Pitt sat at a desk with a suit, glasses and gray wig on and played Fauci, who is the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease and a prominent member of President Donald Trump‘s Coronavirus Task Force. In the sketch, Pitt’s Fauci dissects clips of the president to explain what Trump really means.
“Now, there’s been a lot of misinformation out there about the virus, and yes the president has taken some liberties with our guidelines,” he said. “So, tonight I would like to explain what the president was trying to say.”
The first clip shows the president at a rally, telling the crowd that a vaccine will be available “relatively soon.”
“Relatively soon is an interesting phrase,” Pitt said. “Relative to the entire history of the Earth? Sure, the vaccine’s gonna come real fast. But, if you were to tell a friend ‘I’ll be over relatively soon,’ and then showed up a year and a half later, your friend might be relatively pissed off.”
In the next clip of Trump, he says that the COVID-19 tests are “beautiful” and that everyone who wants to get a test can get one.
“I don’t know if I would describe the tests as ‘beautiful’ unless your idea of beauty is having a cotton swab tickle your brain,” he replied. “Also, when he said ‘everyone can get a test,’ what he meant was ‘almost no one.'”
The third clip shows Trump saying that you can call coronavirus a germ, flu or virus, and that he’s “not sure anybody even knows what it is.”
“We know what it is,” Pitt quips back.
The next clip is of the infamous press briefing where Trump suggests that scientists should study the way disinfectants and UV light kill the coronavirus inside the body. Pitt facepalms, and says that he can’t help but touch his face, even though he’s not supposed to.
The final clip Pitt/Fauci reacts to is Trump saying he’s not going to fire Fauci, and that he thinks he’s “a wonderful guy.”
“So yeah, I’m getting fired,” said Pitt. “But, until then I’m going to be there putting out the facts for whoever’s listening. And when I hear things like the virus can be cured by taking the tide pod challenge, I’ll be there to say: Please don’t.”
And then, Pitt takes off the wig and glasses, in a rare, serious moment for SNL.
“And to the real Dr. Fauci: Thank you for your calm and your clarity at this unnerving time. Thank you to the medical workers, first responders, and their familes for being on the front line,” Pitt said.
