British Oscar nominee Daniel Kaluuya joked he was what the Royal Family ‘feared Harry and Meghan’s baby would look like’ as he hosted Saturday Night Live for the first time last night.
In their bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey last month, Harry and Meghan alleged a member of the family – not the Queen or the Duke of Edinburgh – had expressed concern about Archie’s skin.
The name of the royal has yet to be made public and the comments triggered a wave of speculation and controversy.
Now, Kaluuya, who was born in London to Ugandan parents, referenced the claim during his SNL opening monologue.
He said: ‘First of all, I know you’re hearing my accent and thinking ‘oh no, he’s not black, he’s British’.
‘Let me reassure you that I am black. I’m black and I’m British. Basically I am what the royal family was worried the baby would look like.’
Daniel Kaluuya, who was born in London to Ugandan parents, joked he is what ‘the royal family were worried Archie would look like’
In their bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey last month, Harry and Meghan alleged a member of the family – not the Queen or the Duke of Edinburgh – had expressed concern about Archie’s skin
During the bombshell interview with Oprah, Meghan accused a member of the Royal Family of having ‘concerns’ about ‘how dark’ her son Archie’s skin would be before he was born because she is mixed-race and Harry is white.
The Duchess of Sussex, who is expecting her second child, also described her ‘pain’ that officials had denied Archie the title of prince and accused Buckingham Palace of failing to protect him by denying him 24/7 security.
Prince William asserted that the Royal Family is ‘very much not racist’ as he was questioned about the interview during a public engagement a few days after it aired.
The Queen later responded with a deeply personal message saying that while ‘some recollections vary’, the issues raised, particularly that of race, were ‘concerning’ and would be taken seriously.
Racism, which Prince Harry said was a driving factor in their decision to leave the country, was a major theme of Kaluuya’s hosting of SNL yesterday.
He added: ‘People ask me what’s worse, British racism or American racism. Let me put it this way, British racism is so bad white people left. They wanted to be free, free to create their own kind of racisms.
‘That’s why they invented Australia, South Africa and Boston.’
Discussing his Golden Globe-winning portrayal of Black Panther leader Fred Hampton in Judas And The Black Messiah, Kaluuya, 32, also reminded viewers of the technical issues that marred his acceptance speech during the virtual ceremony.
Kaluuya referenced the claim during his SNL opening monologue last night – with racism a key theme throughout the show
The Duchess of Sussex, who is expecting her second child, also described her ‘pain’ that officials had denied Archie the title of prince
He said: ‘I was muted! Can you believe that? I told the best joke of my life and I was muted.’
Kaluuya, who is nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award, a Bafta and an Oscar, nodded to his breakout role in Get Out and said: ‘I felt like I was in a Sunken Place!’
The first sketch saw him portraying a game show host and medical doctor asking his black relatives about their reluctance to take the Covid-19 vaccine.
Kaluuya also starred as a YouTube prankster in a sketch sending up apology videos from influencers and played a Nigerian father furious about his son changing his degree from medicine to creative writing.
Told the world needs poets, Kaluuya’s character sarcastically responded: ‘If there’s anything we’ve learned from the pandemic, it’s that the world needs more poets.’
Musical guest St Vincent performed the songs Pay Your Way In Pain and The Melting Of The Sun.
SNL’s traditional cold open once again featured comedian Chloe Fineman as Britney Spears fronting talk show Oops, You Did It Again.
It sent up the controversy surrounding Lil Nas X and his satanic-themed music video for Montero (Call Me By Your Name) and the ‘cancellation’ of cartoon character Pepe Le Pew. The cartoon skunk was accused of perpetuating rape culture and has been left out of the upcoming hybrid live-action animation sequel Space Jam: A New Legacy.