“SNL” fans were pulling their hair out during Saturday’s episode thanks to a technical malfunction that caused the audio to go out of sync during the entirely of the cold open sketch and part of hosts Steve Martin and Martin Short’s monologue.
Fortunately the issue was fixed about a minute into the monologue, freeing fans up to enjoy what turned out to be a delightful routine by Short and Martin. And yes, their “Only Murders in the Building” costar Selena Gomez showed up for a cameo at the end. Watch that above now.
And in case you’re wondering, it wasn’t just you and your TV. While the full extent of the problem isn’t known, fans went to social media to complain about it, confirming the problem appears to have affected viewers across the country. Here’s a sample of what that looked and sounded like:
The monologue began with Martin bragging about the many times he’s hosted “Saturday Night Live,” with a photo montage of his previous appearances. Short then showed a montage of the times he’s hosted — sadly, none.
Then the monologue devolved into some of the duo’s trademark absurdist humor as, lit by the Christmas decorations on stage, they proceeded to roast one another with fake funeral eulogies that got progressively weirder, and meaner. And, to be clear, hilarious. It is Steve Martin and Martin Short we’re talking about.
You can see the cold open with corrected audio here:
live in a delusional state this christmas pic.twitter.com/3W3owb3bZB
— Saturday Night Live - SNL (@nbcsnl) December 11, 2022
But fans were of course still vexed by the issue, which appeared to continue for some users well into the show.
@nbcsnl your 3-4 seconds out of sync. I realize there is a 5 sec delay on the show, but I think they mean sound and image to be the same time. Will watch what I can tolerate.
— Dr. Smith (@Mrbandot1) December 11, 2022
That was a weird delay. Did anyone else get that unsynced feed for the open??
— SK Berry Art (@SKBERRYART) December 11, 2022
SNL Update:
— Pithy Quips (@PithyQuips) December 11, 2022
It looks like the audio and video are back in sync, after being out of sync for the entirety of the opening sketch, and some of Steve Martin and Martin Short's opening monologue. https://t.co/cilN8zNDyA
#SNL What's with tonight's audio? Out of sync with video!
— John McBride (@JohnPDX) December 11, 2022
@NBCLA why is @nbcsnl sound out of sync on Spectrum?
— Douglas Wyman (@Dougwyman425) December 11, 2022
Lol, @nbcsnl on @NBC audio is out of sync with video. I’d expect nothing less from shitty @comcast @Xfinity @NBCUniversal
— Non Rev Guy (@NonRevGuy) December 11, 2022