Things are getting strange over at Studio 8H. Fresh off the blockbuster series finale of Stranger Things, Finn Wolfhard made his Saturday Night Live hosting debut with musical guest A$AP Rocky. The Jan. 17 episode marked the midseason return of the long-running sketch comedy series after the annual holiday break. It was also the first episode without Bowen Yang, who made his departure on Dec. 20.
Here are Wolfhard’s best moments from his first SNL hosting gig, including a Heated Rivalry parody and cameos from Sabrina Carpenter and the Stranger Things cast.
COLD OPEN
It’s been a long time since we’ve heard from President Donald Trump (James Austin Johnson), and he gave the American people an update on the state of the country with J.D. Vance (Jeremy Culhane), Marco Rubio (Marcello Hernandez), Kristi Noem (Ashley Padilla), and Pete Hegseth (Colin Jost). “I hope everyone got what they wanted for Christmas,” Trump told the nation. “I did: someone else’s Nobel Peace Prize and Maduro in my stocking.”
OPENING MONOLOGUE
As Finn Wolfhard took to the stage for the first time, he acknowledged how bittersweet it was to say goodbye to Stranger Things, which premiered in 2016. “It started when I was 12,” Wolfhard said, “and it was so awesome to have 400 million people got to watch me go through puberty.” His costars Gaten Matarazzo and Caleb McLaughlin stopped by to celebrate growing up together. Now that they’re no longer child stars, Matarazzo said, “we’re finally able to star in adult films…”
SNACK HOMIEZ
The Snack Homiez (including special guest star Sabrina Carpenter) talked about their favorite snacks with expert teenage Twitch-er Micah (Wolfhard). Micah was a little out of place with the snack-obsessed 12-year-olds, considering he’s trying to watch his figure and stick to celery. He felt even more out of place when A$AP Rocky stopped by to bring the Homiez his go-to snack of 2026: “A$AP Fashion Killer Dill Pickle” flavored “Rap Chips.”
HEATED WIZARDRY
Cue the Heated Rivalry parody! As HBO mounts their ambitious Harry Potter TV series, there’s still time to incorporate another breakout series for maximum synergy: ladies and gentleman, Heated Wizardry! Harry (Wolfhard) and Ron (Ben Marshall) might be rivals on the Quidditch field, but as Hagrid (Jason Momoa) quickly realizes, that heat finds its way into the dorm room.
STRANGER THINGS SPINOFFS
Yes, Stranger Things might’ve ended, but that doesn’t mean Netflix doesn’t have a ton of spinoffs, sequels, and remakes planned to keep those view counts going up and up. Take Mike in Manhattan, a Sex in the City-inspired look at Mike’s (Wolfhard) journeys in 1990s New York with Dustin (Matarazzo) and Lucas (McLaughlin). Mike’s nose might be bleeding, but now it’s from cocaine and not supernatural powers.
BOY BAND
Not every kid wants to follow in their dad’s footsteps. For instance, some sons (Wolfhard) want to join an indie rock band instead of becoming a boy band star like their old man (Johnson). But that doesn’t mean they can’t share a father-son duet with dad’s group members.
Wolfhard is the ninth person to host SNL‘s during this 51st season, following Bad Bunny (with musical guest Doja Cat) on Oct. 4; Amy Poehler (with musical guest Role Model) on Oct. 11; Sabrina Carpenter (who was also the musical guest) on Oct. 18; Miles Teller (with musical guest Brandi Carlile) on Nov. 1; Nikki Glaser (with musical guest Shadow) on Nov. 8; Glen Powell (with musical guest Olivia Dean) on Nov. 15; Melissa McCarthy on Dec. 6; Josh O’Connor (with musical guest Lily Allen) on Dec. 13; and Ariana Grande (with musical guest Cher) on Dec. 20. Saturday Night Live recently added 11 Emmy Awards to its shelf in September, bringing its overall tally to 112.
