Top 20 Times Will Ferrell Broke the SNL Cast

Top 20 Times Will Ferrell Broke the SNL Cast

Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most notable moments where Will Ferrell’s comedic genius shattered the composure of his fellow cast members and guest stars on “SNL”.

#20: “Doctor's Office”

It’s always a Herculean task for Jimmy Fallon to keep his composure in a sketch, especially when performing opposite Will Ferrell. In this Season 26 sketch, Ferrell plays a doctor who terrorizes his own patients just to buy himself some alone time. When Fallon and host Renée Zellweger walk in as an expectant couple, he gives them zero grace. At first, it seems like Fallon might escape without breaking, even as Ferrell badmouths him to an individual over the phone. But then Ferrell unleashes a full-on scream directly at them, and Fallon absolutely folds, taking down Zellweger with him. Even Ferrell lets a grin slip, which only makes it funnier.

#19: “The Love-ahs with Clarissa and Dave”

If you know the Love-Ah's sketches, you already know Rachel Dratch and Will Ferrell's Roger and Virginia are practically a containment hazard. This installment brings Jimmy Fallon back as Dave, now accompanied by a new date named Clarissa, played by host Winona Ryder. Here, Clarissa becomes completely entranced by Roger and Virginia's suffocating romantic energy, leaving Dave feeling like a third wheel on his own date. Things hold together reasonably well… that is, until the food and wine arrive. The props, combined with Ferrell's escalating commitment to the bit, send Fallon into barely-suppressed giggle territory. Ryder isn't far behind too, as she fights a laugh she clearly didn’t budget for.

#18: “Cobras & Panthers”

Norm Macdonald playing a dead-serious gang leader opposite a cast of dancing delinquents is already a comedy goldmine. In this West Side Story-inspired sketch, Macdonald's hardened street thug watches in disbelief as his own crew spontaneously breaks into theatrical song and dance. Ferrell is one of the gang members, and when a rival gang shows up to confront them, Macdonald attempts to rally his boys, calling them out one by one for backup. When he gets to Ferrell's character, Ferrell skips out with a theatrical flourish that is completely, gloriously wrong for the moment. Macdonald's famously deadpan delivery wavers, just barely, but enough to notice. For Norm Macdonald, that's basically a full breakdown.

#17: “Ventriloquist”

There's something uniquely unhinged about a ventriloquist's dummy that gains sentience specifically to complain about his situation. Ferrell plays Wally Culpepper, a well-meaning but deeply concerning performer whose puppet Chippy starts airing some very uncomfortable grievances mid-act. Kenan Thompson and Cecily Strong play a concerned couple who can barely process what they’re seeing. Their reactions start sincere, but the longer Ferrell leans into the bit, the harder it becomes to stay composed. As they try to intervene, both Cecily and Kenan crack at separate moments. The camera catches both of them, and honestly, given what Ferrell is doing up there, the real miracle is that they lasted as long as they did.

#16: “Scared Straight – SNL50”

The SNL 50th anniversary special gave us many gifts, but perhaps none more unhinged than this. Kenan Thompson and Eddie Murphy play two convicts confronting a group of young men about the harsh realities of prison life. Then Will Ferrell walks in as Big Red and it becomes immediately clear that hardly anyone will leave this sketch in one piece. Ferrell declares that prison is, actually, fantastic. He then launches into a story that starts as his origin tale and detours straight into the plot of “Elf,” before taking a very, very racy turn. Ferrell himself starts fumbling his own lines. Thompson and Murphy both crack. Even Mikey Day and Marcello Hernandez can't hold it together.

#15: “Office Breakroom”

Poor Jason. All he did was accidentally confuse Crate & Barrel with Cracker Barrel, and suddenly his entire office won't let him live it down. Or at least that’s what he thinks. Ferrell plays the wounded coworker and begins to spiral dramatically, squaring off against Chris Redd, Heidi Gardner, Alex Moffat and Cecily Strong. His exit strategy: grabbing the office water dispenser bottle for a dramatic storming-out, would have been perfectly fine, except he picks it up completely upside down. As the water trails his every step, Cecily Strong's composure cracks ever so slightly. It certainly doesn’t help that Ferrell remains in the background, crouching to ensure he stays in frame.

#14: “Date in Mexico”

This Cut for Time sketch plays out almost like a short film, and Ferrell commits to every agonizing second of it. He's a romantically optimistic man at a resort restaurant waiting for his overseas lover, clearly channeling the energy of a “90-Day Fiancé” episode. However, his date never shows, instead she calls to dump him. What follows is a masterclass in escalating emotional chaos. Ferrell stress-eats. He spirals. All the while, Cecily Strong and Chris Redd can be heard in the background struggling to keep it together. But the moment that breaks Cecily completely? When Ferrell stands to present the handmade bikini he'd already bought for his lover to her.

#13: “Space, The Infinite Frontier: Dr. Kent Wahler”

Jeff Goldblum is famously quirky, but even he couldn't survive Will Ferrell's Harry Caray. In this installment of the recurring sketch, Ferrell's unhinged broadcaster corners astrophysicist Dr. Kent Wahler, played by Goldblum, for a chat about Jupiter's moons that very quickly goes somewhere strange. Caray wants to know why Wahler's friends call him "Whiskers." He also wants to know, hypothetically, whether Wahler would eat the moon if it were made of BBQ spare ribs. Goldblum laughs several times throughout, and while he tries to frame it as his character finding Caray ridiculous, the seams are very visible. That's not acting. That's a man genuinely delighted and slightly bewildered by whatever Will Ferrell is doing across from him.

#12: “Mountaintop Luvahs”

Roger and Virginia strike again. This installment of the Luvahs’ sketch brings in Amy Poehler and Chris Kattan as a new couple subjected to the duo's suffocating, boundary-obliterating romance. This time, host Jack Black joins the chaos. Ferrell reprises Roger's iconic stilted vowel inflections, this time applying the same bizarre treatment to the words "Subaru" and "tow truck". That choice destroys Rachel Dratch completely. She physically buries her face in Ferrell's hair to hide her grin. Poehler breaks multiple times. Black, who has the misfortune of being on the receiving end of Ferrell's aggressive thigh-stroking, also cracks. At a certain point, containing yourself simply becomes impossible.

#11: “The Sensitive Drill Sergeant”

Ferrell’s drill sergeant is equal parts intimidating and bizarrely nurturing, which is already a tricky balance. Opposite him, David Spade barely stands a chance. Early on, Spade starts to crack, and Ferrell immediately turns it into fuel, punishing him with push-ups while staying fully in character. The real breaking point comes when Ferrell gets in his face, shouting and poking him with his hat brim in increasingly aggressive taps. Spade tries to hold it together, but the combination of physical comedy and Ferrell’s intensity is too much. His smile breaks through, and from there, it’s a losing battle. Ferrell senses it and keeps going, turning Spade’s laughter into part of the rhythm of the sketch.

#10: “Reality Stars”

Together with Cecily Strong, Will Ferrell gets to embrace his sassier side in this sketch. The two play a couple that unexpectedly starts shooting footage for their reality show at a barbecue they’re attending. Their behavior turns outrageous the second the camera starts rolling, with verbal onslaughts that feel like something straight out of a “Real Housewives” episode. Strong’s character tries to chew out her friends while Ferrell joins in and hides his laughs, making others giggle. He also picks meat up off the grill and throws it, prompting more laughter. With chaotic energy for days, this controlled trainwreck is exactly the kind of sketch that causes people to break.

#9: “Evil Boss”

As the employer from hell, Will Ferrell can do whatever he wants. In this sketch, he’s in the process of hiring a new candidate while harassing his other workers in horrible ways. It’s so ridiculous that Pierce Brosnan, who’s playing the applicant, has a hard time keeping his composure. Ferrell is at the top of his comedy game here, so sitting in his vicinity as he yells and mistreats everyone is not easy. Brosnan ends up smiling so wide that he has to do some facial gymnastics to keep his cool. As Ferrell’s character takes things to an extreme, Brosnan at least has the benefit of being able to hide his reaction a little. It’s so wild that it’s amazing the others didn’t break.

#8: “Cast List”

Playing a stuck-up drama teacher in this sketch, Will Ferrell is a ticking time bomb from the beginning. His character really relishes in making the students wait for their casting assignments. While telling everyone to back away from the board, he bumps into co-star Aidy Bryant. This sets off a chain reaction where several of the other actors all start to laugh in a moment that can only be described as thoroughly enjoyable. Always a consummate professional, Ferrell tries to recover, and snaps back into his evil persona. Somehow everyone stifles their laughter long enough to make it through this underrated ode to theater programs.

#7: “Space, the Infinite Frontier: NASA Flight Director Linda Ham”

This surprising version of Harry Caray, which combines a broadcast legend with science education, is irresistible. His talk with Linda Ham takes several twists and turns into unexpected territory. Joan Allen struggles to hold on, as she naturally can’t take Will Ferrell seriously while he rambles on as the baseball announcer. Ferrell is so deep into character that he becomes almost hypnotizing as well as funny. As the sketch comes to a close, Allen basically drops the act, seemingly realizing that her scene partner is only getting funnier. We can’t argue with her either, because the comedian’s every line is hilarious.

#6: “Dr. Beaman’s Office: Test Results”

What begins as a doctor’s visit becomes a fever dream of a sketch. Will Ferrell’s Dr. Beaman informs a couple that something is wrong, but does so in the most outrageous way possible. Honestly, Ferrell’s every move in this sketch would make any elite performer break. He can’t contain himself after Tim Meadows’ dance, leading an already breaking Molly Shannon to laugh as well. The entire idea almost collapses at this point, with only Chris Parnell being able to keep a straight face. Before it’s all over, Ferrell readjusts and brings the glorious sketch home with some solo work — but the laughs stick with us!

#5: “Short Shorts for the USA”

There’s just something about Will Ferrell in too-small clothing that gets us every time. The premise of this sketch, which aired less than a month after 9/11, is that this group of office workers has been encouraged to wear their patriotism on their sleeves - literally. Ferrell was apparently supposed to come in wearing patriotic short-shorts, but right before airtime improvised them into a sort of makeshift thong contraption that barely hides his modesty. So, that’s genuine shock on the faces of his costars. And we don’t blame any one of them for losing their composure when Ferrell… makes himself comfortable. His dedication throughout this bit makes for a hilarious experience that his collaborators, like the audience, clearly love.

#4: “Jeffrey’s with Sean Hayes”

This sketch is hilarious from the jump, and there’s a ton of build up. It all comes down to the finale though, when Will Ferrell’s boss character arrives. He strolls in on a scooter with an icy look that quickly causes Jimmy Fallon and Sean Hayes to lose it. There’s also the little cell phone that adds another hilarious detail to his entrance. Needless to say, his castmates are basically left in stitches, and he himself almost giggles. Fallon is already known for breaking, but trying to stay composed while Will Ferrell is doing some of his best work? That’s tough. Ferrell doesn’t even need to be in the entire sketch to steal the spotlight and generate laughs!

#3: “The Love-ahs with Barbara and Dave”

While trying to enjoy the hot tub, Jimmy Fallon’s Dave encounters an interesting couple played by Will Ferrell and Rachel Dratch. The duo speak with indecipherable accents as they become more ridiculous with each passing second. Their strange behavior starts to put the whole sketch on edge, sending Fallon and Drew Barrymore’s characters for a loop. It’s like a “Twilight Zone” episode that’s played for laughs that even the cast members can’t resist. Everyone, including Ferrell and Dratch, begin to crack as the wacky dialogue gets the best of them. Ferrell soon brings the house down as he spits out his oddly poetic lines through chuckles.

#2: “More Cowbell”

Will Ferrell comes in hot in this iconic sketch. His character starts playing the cowbell in a raucous recording session that doesn’t go as planned. Given free reign to go wild, Ferrell goes all out with his instrument, and the others have to work to avoid ending up in a laughing fit. That, combined with Christopher Walken’s top-notch performance, makes it hard for the actors to hold it together. Jimmy Fallon’s drummer in particular crumbles as he tries to tell off his bandmate, and he can’t help but laugh as Ferrell and Walken do their thing. It’s a perfect storm of hilarity that makes this sketch extra memorable.

#1: “Gus Chiggins, Old Prospector”

We’re not sure how this character found his way into this sketch, but we’re glad he’s here. Gus Chiggins is the odd man out in a military operation that’s about to ship out. Unsurprisingly, the other men have some questions and concerns about the old prospector being there in the first place. Will Ferrell’s absurd performance makes every second of the bizarre premise worth it. His voice, mannerisms, and overall demeanor need to be seen to be believed. Most of the cast breaks one by one as they have to keep asking about Chiggins. While the other cast members are supposed to act mad at the outsider, they can’t contain their giggles after Ferrell’s lines.

Did we miss a Ferrell moment that had you losing it right along with the cast? Drop it in the comments below!