‘SNL’ Artemis II skit parodies NASA’s historic moon mission. Watch
‘SNL’ Artemis II skit parodies NASA’s historic moon mission. Watch
NASA’s Artemis II mission has inspired equal parts awe, joy and and fascination among those who spent days captivated by the historic journey around the moon.
Now, the first human lunar mission since the Apollo era – which came to an end April 10 with a California water landing – has also inspired parody.
“Saturday Night Live” spoofed the trailblazing Artemis II mission in its April 11 episode, hosted by actor Colman Domingo. In the sketch, an increasingly exasperated NASA pilot Victor Glover (Domingo) tries in vain to deliver a moving reflection on the mission while aboard the Orion spacecraft, but is constantly thwarted by the rest of his crewmates.
The Artemis II crew capsule splashes down in the Pacific Ocean in this screengrab from a livestream video after the Artemis II crew’s flyby of the Moon, April 10, 2026.
The first set of parachutes deploys on the Artemis II crew capsule in this screengrab from a livestream video as it descends toward splashdown following its re‑entry to Earth after the Artemis II crew’s flyby of the Moon, April 10, 2026.
The Artemis II crew module separates from its service module in this screengrab from a livestream video as it prepares for re-entry to Earth following the Artemis II crew’s flyby of the Moon, April 10, 2026.
Artemis II crew members are reflected in the window of their capsule in this screenshot from a livestream video minutes before its re-entry to Earth, following the Artemis II crew’s flyby of the Moon, April 10, 2026.
Here’s a look at the “SNL” Artemis skit.
‘SNL’ Artemis II skit
The “SNL” Artemis II skit, part of an episode recorded and aired April 11, featured “Euphoria” star Domingo as NASA astronaut Victor Glover attempting to record a video for Earth.
But Glover’s introspective message is constantly interrupted by the rest of the crew and their sophomoric shenanigans as boredom sets in nine days into the mission. A floating wayward Pringles can, Sarah Sherman as a sleeping NASA mission specialist Christina Koch and more enter the frame, undermining Glover’s attempts to wax philosophic about space and the fragility of life on Earth.
Marcello Hernández as Canadian mission specialist Jeremy Hansen and Mikey Day as commander Reid Wiseman also get up to no shortage of antics in the skit, including a rather gross moment when Wiseman shows off the aftermath of a sneeze in microgravity.
The Artemis II mission launches April 1 from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. The four-person crew aboard the Orion spacecraft hitched a ride to orbit atop NASA’s giant 322-foot Space Launch System rocket. Launching atop 8.8 million pounds of thrust, the SLS is the most powerful rocket NASA ever launched, about 17% more powerful than the iconic Saturn V rocket used during the Apollo era.
Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman of NASA took this stunning photograph of Earth from the Orion spacecraft’s window on April 2. The image is reminiscent of the iconic “blue marble” image captured during the Apollo 17 mission in 1972.
Before going to sleep April 5, the Artemis II crew snapped one more photo of the moon, as it drew close in the window of the Orion spacecraft. Shortly after, the astronauts entered the lunar sphere of influence, where the pull of the moon’s gravity became stronger than Earth’s.
The crew of Artemis II captured a breathtaking image of a celestial event known as an “Earthset,” in which the Earth dropped below the lunar horizon. The image is reminiscent of the iconic “Earthrise” photo that NASA astronaut Bill Anders captured in 1968 during the Apollo 8 mission that showed our planet rising on the lunar horizon.
The Orion spacecraft the Artemis II astronauts were aboard is captured in the same frame as both the moon and Earth in this photo captured about four hours into the historic April 6 flyby.
The Artemis II crew captured this breathtaking photo of our galaxy, the Milky Way. Spanning more than 100,000 light-years, Earth is located along one of the galaxy’s spiral arms, about halfway from the center.
Watch ‘Saturday Night Live’ parody of Artemis II
What did Artemis II accomplish? What was NASA’s moon mission?
NASA celebrates the safe return of the Artemis II crew in Houston, Texas, on April 11, 2026, during a welcoming ceremony a day after splashdown from their moon mission.
(L-R) NASA’s Artemis II mission astronauts Canadian Space Agency’s Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist Christina Koch, pilot Victor Glover and commander Reid Wiseman greet attendees to their welcoming ceremony at Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base.
(L-R) NASA’s Artemis II mission astronauts Canadian Space Agency’s Jeremy Hansen, commander Reid Wiseman, mission specialist Christina Koch and pilot Victor Glover attend a welcoming ceremony at Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base in Houston, Texas, on April 11, 2026. An elated NASA late April 10 was celebrating its successful voyage around the Moon, after four astronauts safely returned to Earth having completed the first lunar flyby in more than 50 years. The NASA spacecraft carrying four astronauts — three Americans and one Canadian — splashed down without a hitch off the California coast, capping the US space agency’s crewed test mission that returned with spectacular images of the Moon.
NASA’s Artemis II mission commander Reid Wiseman (R) shakes hands with pilot Victor Glover as Christina Koch looks on during a welcoming ceremony at Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base in Houston, Texas, on April 11, 2026. An elated NASA late April 10 was celebrating its successful voyage around the Moon, after four astronauts safely returned to Earth having completed the first lunar flyby in more than 50 years. The NASA spacecraft carrying four astronauts — three Americans and one Canadian — splashed down without a hitch off the California coast, capping the US space agency’s crewed test mission that returned with spectacular images of the Moon.
After launching April 1 from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA’s Artemis II moon mission came to an end April 10 with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean near California.
During the mission, Wiseman, Glover, Koch and Hansen traveled farther in space than any humans ever have while performing a flyby of the moon’s far side, where they collected observations and data for scientists back on Earth.
The mission, the first human lunar venture in more than 50 years, served as a test flight setting the stage for a moon landing planned during Artemis IV in 2028. Up next, though, NASA will test out one or both commercial lunar landers being developed by SpaceX and Blue Origin by having Artemis III astronauts dock with them in Earth during in 2027.