President Donald Trump (James Austin Johnson) was paid a visit by the ghost of Jeffrey Epstein (Will Ferrell) during tonight’s “Saturday Night Live” cold open, which concluded with the duo singing “Just the Two of Us” together.
“How you doing, Donny baby?” Ferrell’s Epstein said, appearing in the Oval Office dressed in chains like Jacob Marley from “A Christmas Carol.” In response, Trump told Epstein his approval ratings have entered the 30s, to which Ferrell’s deceased sex trafficker replied, “Oh, the 30s? Gross. Call me when it hits 17!”
When Trump asked Epstein how Heaven is, the latter informed him, “It’s really, really hot. But you know me. I keep busy. Mahjong every Wednesday with Stalin and John Wayne Gacy. That guy has stories!” Ferrell’s Epstein subsequently inquired if Johnson’s Trump has any “fun summer plans.”
“We’ve got the World Cup, a UFC fight on my lawn like I’m white trash on Worldstar,” the president said, adding, “We’re also doing the Patriot Games, where high school athletes come from all over the country,” a detail that Ferrell’s Epstein, unfortunately, was very excited about. Laughing, Trump asked Epstein for a high-five.
“You know what? This time, I’m gonna leave you hanging!” Ferrell’s Epstein joked. “We had some fun times together, didn’t we, Donny? We should have taken more pictures!” The latter remark prompted Johnson’s Trump to respond, “No! It’s really bad that we took any.”
You can watch tonight’s “SNL” cold open yourself below.
the ghost of Jeffrey Epstein pays Trump a visit pic.twitter.com/CjxMmIdYpT
— Saturday Night Live (@nbcsnl) May 17, 2026
Ferrell’s Epstein went on to inform Johnson’s Trump that he had arrived to show him some visions of the future. These included a glimpse of former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem (Ashley Padilla) selling vacuum cleaners on TV and current Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (Colin Jost) and FBI Director Kash Patel (Aziz Ansari) hosting a drunk podcast together.
“Welcome back to the Kash Cast with Kash and Pete!” Ansari’s Patel said in the vision. “Shout out to our sponsor, my own personal line of cologne, ‘Incompetence For Men.’ Every bottle is full of my forehead sweat from my many Senate grillings, a smell so strong it’ll cross your eyes!”
Looking for the bright side, Johnson’s Trump surmised, “Well, if Pete’s podcasting, I guess that means that the war in Iran is over.” Ferrell’s Epstein then told him, “Yup! We came in second.”
“Donny, just remember. No matter how many wars you start or how bad you tank the economy as a distraction, people will always associate you with me,” Ferrell’s Epstein later assured Johnson’s Trump, adding, “My dear close friend, that is a beautiful thing.”
In honor of their friendship, the two men then concluded this “SNL” season’s final cold open with a duet of “Just the Two of Us.”
