The 2010s were a tumultuous decade for Saturday Night Live. The first half of the decade was marked by a period of transition as many prominent cast members such as Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig departed the show. The second half marked the Trump administration, which skyrocketed the show to new heights of pop culture relevance.
However, no episode of Saturday Night Live is complete without the contributions of the week's guest host. The 2010s saw many first-time hosts, as well as popular cast members returning for a chance at the spotlight. These ten hosts were not only the best performers of the decade but also elevated the show during a rough period.
10 Tom Hanks
Many point to Dave Chappelle's Emmy-winning hosting gig in 2016 as a high point of the show during that year's election. However, a few weeks prior, America's dad Tom Hanks made his first appearance as a host in ten years. In his ninth time as host of the NBC sketch show, Hanks brought joy to TV screens during a scary few weeks.
Famously, this episode was the origin of Hanks' character David S. Pumpkins, who strangely became a cultural phenomenon. The episode also featured perhaps the best iteration of the recurring "Black Jeopardy" sketch. Overall, Hanks brought his usual warmth and energy, reminding people at home that it was okay to still laugh.
9 Adam Driver
Star Wars and Marriage Story star Adam Driver hosted the show twice in the 2010s. Famously, his 2018 appearance hosting alongside musical guest Kanye West led to a controversial rant by West following the show's credits. Outside that incident, Driver commanded audiences' attention with his passionate sketch performances.
Adam Driver was a part of some of the show's best sketches in the whole decade. He hilariously reprised his Star Wars character Kylo Ren in an Undercover Boss parody. He also brought the house down with his oil tycoon character Abraham H. Parnassus. Overall, it seems like Saturday Night Live fits Adam Driver like a good lightsaber.
8 Phoebe Waller-Bridge
Being a first-time host is never an easy job, but Phoebe Waller-Bridge made it look easy. The Fleabag star had become a TV icon over the year prior to her hosting gig, making her a stand-out of the fall 2019 season. Suffice it to say, no one was shocked at how funny and natural Phoebe made sketch performance look.
Her monologue is a great example of how fluent in funny Waller-Bridge is, though other sketches also prove this. Her appearance in a parody of Love Island is another memorable cut from that episode. Though nothing compares to the competitive news anchors in "Mid-Day News," one of the best sketches of the 2019-2020 season.
7 Kristen Stewart
The former Twilight star has come a long way from her vampire romance roots. Kristen Stewart hosted the show twice, in 2017 and 2019, and fit alongside the cast more so than many hosts since. Like any good host, Stewart threw herself into the sketches she performed, becoming a part of a few decade highlights.
Her most acclaimed sketch is her sultry appearance alongside Vanessa Bayer in a mock Totino's Pizza Rolls commercial. However, she also shines in another commercial, Duolingo for Talking to Children. Her first hosting gig also featured a cameo appearance by another one of the decade's best hosts...
6 Melissa McCarthy
McCarthy first hosted in 2011, and by her 2017 appearance alongside musical guest HAIM, she became a Five-Timer. During the latter half of the decade, she earned praise for her portrayal of Trump's Press Secretary Sean Spicer, which debuted in Kristen Stewart's episode. However, her best characters came earlier in the decade.
Many of McCarthy's best sketches feature her playing oddball characters. She shines best when she fully commits to these roles, such as pizza-eating entrepreneur Barb Kelner or abusive women's basketball coach Sheila Kelly. It's guaranteed that whenever McCarthy appears, she will stop at nothing to bring the house down.
5 Adam Sandler
The Billy Madison star was infamously fired from the cast of SNL alongside co-star Chris Farley in 1995. After a long hiatus from appearing on the show, Adam Sandler made a comeback in 2019 as host. The former star of the show didn't waste the opportunity, bringing back fan-favorite Weekend Update character, Opera Man.
Sandler also got to be a part of some brilliant new sketches, such as a dad with marital troubles in a commercial for Rectix. However, the highlight of the show wasn't Sandler reprising a character or acting like his goofy self. Instead, it was his touching tribute song to Chris Farley saved for the very end, which is equally heartfelt as it is funny.
4 Emma Stone
Emma Stone hosted Saturday Night Live for the first time in 2010 and has since returned three more times to host throughout the decade. Whenever Stone takes on hosting duties, her performances feel right at home alongside any cast member. To list the best sketches she's been in would take too long, but there are definitely several highlights.
Stone joined Andy Samberg for a technology-based show called "We're Going To Make Technology Hump," which has a pretty self-explanatory premise. She also shines in "Wells For Boys," a Fisher-Price commercial aimed at sensitive children. Her best role, however, is dramatically playing a method actor in "The Actress."
3 John Mulaney
John Mulaney got his start as a writer on the show, helping create Bill Hader's iconic Weekend Update character Stefon. Since then, he's become a beloved stand-up comic, finding his way back to 30 Rock to host twice during the 2010s. As a former writer, Mulaney used this opportunity to revive some of his rejected sketch ideas.
Among some of Mulaney's best sketches as a host are these rejected sketches, such as the Les Misérables tribute "Diner Lobster." He also shines alongside Bill Hader as a contestant in the torturous game show "What's That Name?" Mulaney's hosting gigs have gone so well, in fact, that he's been invited back every season since.
2 Betty White
Despite being a television icon for over 70 years, Betty White never hosted Saturday Night Live until 2010. Her hosting gig was the result of a fan petition, making her the first host to be selected by fans. This one-time gig also won her a well-deserved Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series.
Sadly, Betty White passed away in December 2021, but fans can remember her through some of her iconic sketch appearances during her time as a host. Among her best roles, she joined Kenan Thompson as prisoners in a Scared Straight program. Also, SNL fans have to check out her role as MacGruber's grandmother in the iconic sketch.
1 Eddie Murphy
Eddie Murphy is credited with saving SNL from the brink of cancellation in the 80s. Unfortunately, his history with the show ended up less rosy than that, after he swore off returning thanks to a poor joke by David Spade. However, Murphy had a change of heart by the end of 2019 when he returned to promote his film Dolemite Is My Name.
What made Murphy's return to hosting so special was that the episode truly felt like a tribute to his time as a cast member. Eddie Murphy reprised all of his most popular characters, from Mr. Rogers parody Mr. Robinson to the beloved Buckwheat. One can't help but re-watch this episode with a nostalgic smile on their faces.