Tom Hanks returned to Saturday Night Live last night to reprise David S. Pumpkins, the character that premiered on the show's Halloween episode a full decade ago. Yes, 10 years. The cold open, which also featured cast member Mikey Day and former cast member Bobby Moynihan, quickly pivoted into yet another Trump freeze-frame sketch, this one with James Austin Johnson's president rambling about his "gay dementia." It's the kind of thing that makes you wonder: just because we can resurrect a sketch from a decade ago, should we?
The nostalgia was certainly there. Hanks is a reliable SNL draw, and there's something undeniably clever about David S. Pumpkins as a character—the kind of anarchic, commitment-to-absurdity comedy that the show does best. But resurrection for its own sake isn't innovation. SNL has long trafficked in recurring characters and callbacks, but there's a creeping sense that the show is cannibalizing its own legacy rather than creating new material that will become tomorrow's nostalgic touchstones. When you're dusting off decade-old sketches alongside current politics sketches, the message feels backward-looking.
The evening's other highlight came from musical guest Gracie Abrams, making her second appearance on the show. She performed "Hit The Wall" and "Here You Come, There You Go," with the latter serving as the live debut of a song from the newly announced deluxe version of Daughter From Hell, which includes five additional tracks. Her staging—dressing as Juliet for the first song and Romeo for the second, paying tribute to Baz Luhrmann's 1996 adaptation starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes—showed genuine theatrical ambition. This is what SNL should be amplifying: artists using the platform to premiere material and take creative risks.
Host Inde Navarrette also deserves credit for her monologue, which referenced previous host Shane Gillis' widely criticized "whore" joke. It wasn't as scathing as SNL UK's reaction to that incident, but maintaining accountability matters. The show also brought back Bobby Moynihan's Drunk Uncle during a Weekend Update segment about the World Series, complete with a visit from Milwaukee Brewers players Christian Yelich and Brice Turang alongside manager Pat Murphy.
SNL works best when it balances institutional memory with forward momentum. Last night felt heavy on the former. Yes, David S. Pumpkins can return, and yes, Tom Hanks will always be welcome. But the show's future shouldn't be written in the margins of its past. The energy and creativity on display with Gracie Abrams' performance—that's where SNL should be investing its cultural capital.