SNL accused of ‘punching down’ following controversial Tourette’s sketch

EntertainmentOpinion
2 Mar 2026 • 6:12 PM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

The world’s most free-thinking newspaper

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  • Saturday Night Live is facing significant backlash for a controversial sketch that parodied a racial slur incident at the recent Bafta awards.
  • The original incident involved Scottish campaigner John Davidson, who has Tourette's syndrome, shouting a racial slur during the Baftas, which was inadvertently broadcast by the BBC.
  • The SNL sketch, released online after being cut from the main episode, featured cast members playing controversial celebrities who blamed Tourette's for their past problematic behaviour.
  • Critics widely condemned the sketch as 'shameful' and 'punching down', arguing it mocked people with disabilities and trivialised the struggles of individuals like John Davidson.
  • Despite some defence that the sketch was satirising the celebrities, the overwhelming public consensus was that it made a mockery of Tourette's, causing distress to those affected.

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