SNL writers are slammed as racist for 'two b*****s versus a gorilla' skit
Quinta Brunson and Ego Nwodim took part in the skit capitalizing on the viral meme '100 men vs a gorilla ', playing two women arguing with a gorilla inside an enclosure.
'Why you starin' like you got a problem? Can I have my face back?' Brunson asks.
'You think this the first time I've fought a 400 pound b***h? I used to work at Lane Bryant,' she adds, referring to the plus sized women's clothing store.
Nwodim then interjects, adding: 'You up here on all fours lookin' like LGBT and the Q, sassy.'
During the skit, the women refer to each other as b***h as an apparent term of endearment, with Nwodim telling Brunson 'that was good b***h' after she made a joke at the expense of the gorilla.
Brunson answered: 'Thank you b***h.'
Separately, she said to the gorilla, 'you supposed to be all big and strong? Stand up. It's giving one of the gworls' - which is a slang word for 'girls' to refer to women, especially those within the black trans community.
The sketch has been widely panned on social media, with a post from the SNL team inundated with criticism.
'Incredibly offensive and ignorant to address any woman as a B**CH from an entire television network,' one wrote.
Another added: 'Y'all might as well go ahead and say ''two black b**ches vs a gorilla.'
A third critic said 'this don't sit right with me at all. ''Can I have my face back?'' 'LGBT and Q'' + fat shaming? ''It's giving one of the girls''. No way they are this tone deaf... This is flat out disrespectful.'
'This had to go through multiple people after being written, and not a single one of them thought this was a bad idea?' another asked.
'They're back to mocking black women using two black women? Yuck.'
Others pointed out that the joke started as 100 men vs the gorilla, yet has somehow devolved into 'two black women' vs the gorilla.
The initial meme began on X and swept the internet last week, with people like Elon Musk and MrBeast weighing in.
two bitches vs. a gorilla pic.twitter.com/6w1Ok1TD4q
— Saturday Night Live - SNL (@nbcsnl) May 4, 2025
The sketch has been widely panned on social media, with a post from the SNL team inundated with criticism
It posed the question about whether 100 men could take down a single gorilla, to which Musk said he'd be willing to volunteer.
'Sure. What's the worst that could happen?' he asked.
Mike Tyson said the gorilla 'would get f***ed up' if it had to go up against 100 heavyweight champions.
But critics say Brunson and Nwodim's skit was 'rooted in anti-Black racism. An African and a Caribbean cosplaying a stereotypical Black American woman is not funny.'
DailyMail.com has approached NBC for comment.
Critics say Brunson and Nwodim's skit was 'rooted in anti-Black racism. An African and a Caribbean cosplaying a stereotypical Black American woman is not funny'
Supporters argued that Brunson likely writes her own skits and must have approved of the sketch before it went to air.
Others argued that one of the most controversial lines - 'can I have my face back?' - is a common phrase to call out a person who is staring too long, and does not have the racist connotations that others have interpreted it as.
'Maybe it's a generational thing?' one person queried while defending the phrase.
Others accused critics of simply being too 'woke' or sensitive to enjoy the humor.
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