“I thought that was a safe place to do that”: Did SNL Ban Adrien Brody After His Notorious Skit? 

SUMMARY

• Adrien Brody once appeared in a 2003 SNL skit donning dreadlocks and putting on a Jamaican accent.
• Ahead of his Golden Globes win, the resurfaced video sparked backlash and rumors of him being banned from SNL.
• Reflecting on his idea of SNL, Brody addressed the incident and clarified his standing with the show.

While The Brutalist star, Adrien Brody, won the Golden Globes under the Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama category, at the Sunday’s ceremony—baffling footage from his 2003 SNL appearance started resurfacing. Soon, the video sparked headlines about Brody being presumably banned from the show, after his outrageous skit. 

Adrien Brody in The Brutalist | image: A24

According to the resurfaced video, Adrien Brody can be seen in a dreadlock wig, putting on a Jamaican accent to introduce the musical guest of the night, Sean Paul. Now while this incident was overlooked back in 2003, it recently started making controversial headlines which led Brody to address the incident and clarify if he has been permanently banned from SNL. 

Adrien Brody’s infamous 2003 SNL skit started resurfacing 

In a now infamous moment from a 2003 episode of SNL hosted by Adrien Brody, the actor can be seen donning a wig of dreadlocks and speaking in an exaggerated Jamaican accent to introduce the night’s musical guest, Sean Paul. This age-old video of the Oscar winner resurfaced amid the headlines of Brody winning Best Performance in a Motion Picture for The Brutalist at the 2025 Golden Globes. 

While the video was originally overlooked and taken lightly by the audiences, it now started resurfacing online sparking controversies surrounding Adrien Brody’s outrageous take on the Jamaican accent. As Brody’s “ya mon“-filled introduction strayed wildly from the show’s “Ladies and gentleman” introduction format, it sparked rumors on social media of the actor being banned from the iconic live show.  

Adrien Brody in dreadlocks wig putting up a Jamaican accent in his SNL skit | image: X/@SpencerAlthouse

Thereafter, before things could go further out of control, Adrien Brody addressed the incident and the rumors surrounding his presumed ban from SNL. Explaining what went behind his skit and how the showrunner reacted to his performance, Brody opened up about where he stands with the show. 

Adrien Brody clarified if he’s banned from SNL 

Speaking with Vulture, Adrien Brody reflected on the notorious SNL skit from 2003 and shared his opinion on the same. Realizing that people have grown sensitive to such things, in recent years, Brody explained that while the bit was indeed his idea, he had previously taken permission from the showrunner Lorne Michaels during dress rehearsal, who then provided him with the costume. 

Further addressing the rumor of being presumably banned from SNL, Adrien Brody clarified that he was never issued a formal ban. However, he was never invited back to the show either, since his last appearance in 2003. Stating that he believed SNL was the safe space to do the outrageous skit, Brody told the outlet that the Jamaican bit was among many other ideas he had tossed around during his hosting stint. 

Adrien Brody in a still from The Pianist | image: StudioCanal, Miramax

But I also have never been invited back on. So I don’t know what to tell you.  

I think Lorne wasn’t happy with me embellishing a bit, but they allowed me to. I thought that was a safe space to do that, weirdly. They were all literally agape from me pitching. 

In the end, it seems that while Adrien Brody was never issued a formal ban from SNL, even he’s now confused about where he stands with the show since he was never invited back in the past two decades. 

Written by Krittika Mukherjee

Articles Published: 2330

Krittika is a News Writer at FandomWire with 2 years of prior experience in lifestyle and web content writing. With her previous works available on HubPages and Medium, she has woven over 2000 stories with us, about fan-favorite actors, movies, and shows. Post-graduate in Journalism and Honors-graduate in English Literature, when this art enthusiast isn't crafting your next favorite article, she finds her escapism in coffee, fiction, and the Wizarding World.