Ariana Grande is team Carol Burnett.
The iciness between comedy legend Carol Burnett and SNL boss Lorne Michaels is well-documented, and Grande made her stance clear when she sported one of Burnett’s famous ensembles to promote her upcoming hosting stint on the show this weekend.
Accompanied by musical guest Cher and soon-to-be departed cast member Bowen Yang, Grande donned the same gown Burnett wore during her monologue on the March 17, 1973 episode of The Carol Burnett Show. The dress’s designer, Bob Mackie, confirmed its authenticity on Instagram.
The move is a pointed one, as Burnett, 92, was asked in September about the state of her relationship with Michaels—given that as a champion of SNL’s variety-show format, she’s never been asked to host the show in its 50-year history. “I don’t know what I did to upset that man,” Burnett, 92, told The New Yorker, before asking her interviewer, “Do you think it’s misogynistic?”
That wasn’t the first time the star addressed her cold relationship with the show. Asked if she’d ever appear on SNL if she were asked, Burnett told Vulture in 2019, “No, I don’t think I would. Maybe like 20 years ago or whatever. But that ship has sailed.”
In addition to never inviting Burnett on SNL, several former writers have noted that the show boss had a habit of using the phrase “too Carol Burnett” to criticize the kind of material he did not want on his show. According to original writers like Al Franken and Buck Henry, Burnett’s name became “shorthand” for everything the show was trying to avoid.
Grande brought a little piece of Burnett with her to Studio 8H with her choice of garb in the new promo, which shows Yang and the pop singer gleefully accepting a slap from musical guest Cher.
The Saturday’s episode will be Yang’s last, with the six-season cast member exiting the show mid-season. Neither Yang nor Michaels has commented on his departure.
