Elon Musk’s appearance as Wario on Saturday Night Live in 2021 reportedly failed to impress Nintendo employees, according to two former senior marketing staff members. Kit Ellis and Krysta Yang recently revisited the sketch on their podcast while discussing the show’s renewed interest in video game jokes.
Musk hosted SNL on May 8, 2021, appearing in a comedy segment that portrayed Wario as a defendant accused of murdering Mario. The unusual courtroom premise put the Tesla CEO in the role of Nintendo’s famously greedy character, complete with Wario’s signature moustache and costume.
Speaking on the Kit and Krysta podcast, Yang recalled the company’s response bluntly:
“They did not like the Elon Musk 2021 [bit].”
Ellis, who was also working at Nintendo at the time, agreed that the sketch
“did not go over well.”
WHY NINTENDO STAFF WERE UNCOMFORTABLE WITH THE WARIO SKETCH
Ellis described the segment as unexpected, pointing out that it had no clear connection to an actual Nintendo product. “That one was out of leftfield,” he said, explaining why the sketch stood apart from more conventional promotional comedy.
Yang also suggested that some of the material ventured into subject matter that Nintendo would find uncomfortable. The company is protective of its family-friendly characters and typically maintains control over how its properties are represented in official promotions.
The sketch’s premise was also an unusual fit for Wario, who is generally portrayed as a greedy rival to Mario rather than the plumber’s primary nemesis. That role is more commonly associated with Bowser.
NEW VIDEO GAME JOKES MAY BE EASIER FOR NINTENDO TO WELCOME
Ellis and Yang also discussed SNL’s more recent video game-related comedy, including a sketch referencing the release timing of Grand Theft Auto 6 and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. They suggested that this type of joke could be more welcome at Nintendo because it creates attention around its games without requiring the company to pay for advertising.
Their comments offer a look into how Nintendo’s marketing staff may distinguish between jokes that promote interest in its products and sketches that use its characters in ways the company finds uncomfortable. However, the former employees’ recollections do not represent an official statement from Nintendo.
Musk’s Wario appearance remains a memorable example of SNL combining celebrity comedy with gaming culture, even if the reported reaction inside Nintendo was less enthusiastic than the sketch itself.
