9 Times "SNL" Cast Members Looked Exactly Like The Celebrities They Were Impersonating, And 9 Times They Didn't Even Try

    Wearing a "Mahershala Ali" name tag does not, in fact, make a good Mahershala Ali costume.

    Tessa Fahey
    by Tessa Fahey

    BuzzFeed Staff

    Putting on a live comedy show with up-to-date pop culture references isn't easy, but Saturday Night Live does it week after week. And while they sometimes nail their celebrity impersonations, other times it really looks nothing like them. Here are some of the best and the worst:

    1. Didn't even try: Pete Davidson as Machine Gun Kelly

    NBC, Jeremy Fraser La Exposures / Getty Images for iHeartMedia

    2. Spot on: Tina Fey as Sarah Palin

    NBC, William Thomas Cain / Getty Images

    3. Didn't even try: Beck Bennett as Javier Bardem

    NBC, Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images

    4. Spot on: Heidi Gardner as Kristen Schaal

    NBC, Steve Granitz / WireImage

    5. Didn't even try: Andrew Dismukes as Keith Habersberger

    NBC, The Try Guys / Via youtube.com

    6. Spot on: Maya Rudolph as Kamala Harris

    NBC, Saul Loeb / AFP via Getty Images

    7. Didn't even try: Dan Aykroyd as Jimmy Carter

    NBC, Owen Franken - Corbis / Corbis via Getty Images

    8. Spot on: Will Ferrell as George W. Bush

    NBC, Mark Ralston / AFP via Getty Images

    9. Didn't even try: Chris Redd as Mahershala Ali

    NBC, Shannon Finney / Getty Images

    10. Spot on: Kate McKinnon as Kellyanne Conway

    NBC, Saul Loeb / AFP via Getty Images

    11. Didn't even try: Fred Armisen as Barack Obama

    NBC, Pool / Getty Images

    12. Spot on: Fred Armisen as Prince

    NBC, Bertrand Guay / AFP via Getty Images

    13. Didn't even try: Taran Killam as Brad Pitt

    NBC, Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images

    14. Spot on: Melissa Villaseñor as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

    NBC, Nicholas Kamm / AFP via Getty Images

    15. Didn't even try: Kate McKinnon as Lindsey Graham

    NBC, Kevin Dietsch / Getty Images

    16. Spot on: Larry David as Bernie Sanders

    NBC, Andrew Burton / Getty Images

    17. Didn't even try: Chevy Chase as Gerald Ford

    NBC, David Hume Kennerly / Getty Images

    But they knew that.

    NBC

    18. And finally, the best celebrity impression SNL has ever done: Kenan Thompson as Reba McEntire

    NBC, Jeff Kravitz / FilmMagic via Getty Images

    Did we miss your favorite SNL impression of all time? Tell us in the comments!

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