• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
Arts & EntertainmentSaturday Night Live

Watch Saturday Night Live’s Shirtless Vladimir Putin Assure America About President Trump

By
Mahita Gajanan
Mahita Gajanan
and
TIME
TIME
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Mahita Gajanan
Mahita Gajanan
and
TIME
TIME
Down Arrow Button Icon
January 22, 2017, 10:35 AM ET
Saturday Night Live - Season 42
SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE -- "Felicity Jones" Episode 1715 -- Pictured: (l-r) Bobby Moynihan, Vanessa Bayer, Sasheer Zamata as reporters, and Beck Bennett as Vladimir Putin during the Trump Press Conference Cold Open on January 14th, 2017 -- (Photo by: Will Heath/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)NBC NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

Saturday Night Live‘s Vladimir Putin attempted to reassure Americans anxious about President Donald Trump in a special message from Russia during the show’s cold open.

“Today, many of you are scared and marching in the streets. You are worried that the country is in the hands of this unpredictable man,” the shirtless Russian president, played by Beck Bennett, said. “It’s not. Relax, I got this.”

[hulu id=1g3bnvcxla0lguj3p5gcng width=512 height=288]

Putin also took a critical eye to the 36 hours of Trump’s presidency, saying that though the new president is “perhaps not” perfect, he could “get him there.”

For more on the Women’s March, watch:

“I’m glad to see so many people showed up to your inauguration,” Putin said, addressing Trump and showing a picture of a packed National Mall in Washington D.C. “Oh wait, that’s the Women’s March.”

Millions of people turned out in D.C. and cities across the U.S. and the world in opposition to the Trump Administration’s views on Saturday. The massive attendance overshadowed the relatively small presence at Trump’s inaugural ceremony.

For more on the Women’s March, watch:

Although Alec Baldwin did not appear to play Trump following the presidential inauguration, SNL took on the new administration’s inaccurate statements about the size of the crowd at the inauguration on Friday with some friendly advice for Trump.

“Today you went to the CIA and said 1 million people came to see you in Washington, D.C.,” Putin said. “If you’re going to lie, don’t make it so obvious. Say you are friends with LeBron James—not that you are LeBron James.”

About the Authors
By Mahita Gajanan
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
By TIME
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Arts & Entertainment

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Arts & Entertainment

Arts & EntertainmentGen Z
Gen Zers and millennials go analog with letter writing, typewriter clubs and calligraphy to take a break from screen time
By Cheyanne Mumphrey and The Associated PressJanuary 17, 2026
12 hours ago
SuccessWarren Buffett
Warren Buffett’s son says he didn’t know his dad was a billionaire until he was in his 20s—and his friends were just as surprised
By Sydney LakeJanuary 17, 2026
18 hours ago
raccoon
North AmericaAnimals
For 15 years, a neuroscientist has studied raccoon intelligence in Central Virginia. Then a drunk one passed out in a nearby liquor store
By Kelly Lambert and The ConversationJanuary 16, 2026
1 day ago
Close cropped images of Sam Altman alongside an actor playing him.
AIFilm Industry
A filmmaker deepfaked Sam Altman for his movie about AI. Then things got personal
By Beatrice NolanJanuary 16, 2026
1 day ago
powell
BankingFederal Reserve
‘We are Jerome Powell’: Gen Z finds an unlikely meme hero in the Fed chair via AI songs and fan edits
By Eva Roytburg and Nick LichtenbergJanuary 16, 2026
2 days ago
North AmericaFootball
Miami-Indiana championship game has fans paying $30,000 a seat
By Anna J. Kaiser, Michael Smith and BloombergJanuary 16, 2026
2 days ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Newsletters
The oil CEO who stood up to Trump is a follower of the disciplined 'Exxon way' and has a history of blunt statements
By Jordan BlumJanuary 13, 2026
5 days ago
placeholder alt text
Politics
The Nobel Prize committee doesn't want Trump getting one, even as a gift—but they treated Obama very differently
By Nick LichtenbergJanuary 16, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
America’s $38 trillion national debt is so big the nearly $1 trillion interest payment will be larger than Medicare soon
By Shawn TullyJanuary 15, 2026
3 days ago
placeholder alt text
Banking
'Absolutely, positively no chance, no way, no how, for any reason': Dimon says he'd never run the Fed but 'would take the call' to lead Treasury
By Jacqueline MunisJanuary 16, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Jensen Huang tells Stanford students their high expectations may make it hard for them to succeed: 'I wish upon you ample doses of pain and suffering'
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJanuary 16, 2026
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Europe
Americans have been quietly plundering Greenland for over 100 years, since a Navy officer chipped fragments off the Cape York iron meteorite
By Paul Bierman and The ConversationJanuary 14, 2026
3 days ago

© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.