A beloved Halloween character came back for one night, and a fake president would not let him finish his routine.
Saturday Night Live aired its Halloween cold open on October 31, 2026, bringing Tom Hanks back as David S. Pumpkins before James Austin Johnson's Donald Trump character barged in to turn the sketch into a joke about the president's recent comments on men's appearances. The episode marked the show's last cold open before the 2026 midterm elections.
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How the SNL Halloween cold open Trump David S. Pumpkins bit unfolded
The sketch opened like a normal Halloween attraction. Kenan Thompson led a group of guests through several spooky scenes, building up to what looked like a classic haunted house tour. Then David S. Pumpkins showed up, played by Hanks in his familiar pumpkin-patterned blazer, flanked by Mikey Day and Bobby Moynihan dressed as his dancing skeleton sidekicks.
Just when it seemed like a straightforward callback to the character's 2016 debut, Johnson's Trump stepped into the scene and stopped the whole thing cold. He told the audience he was pausing the sketch and poked fun at how repetitive the David S. Pumpkins bit tends to be, joking that people would be upset they didn't get a third appearance from the character before promising to save everyone time since Pumpkins just keeps popping up and confusing people anyway.
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Trump character compares himself to Pumpkins before the big punchline
Johnson's Trump then drew a straight line between himself and the Halloween character, noting that they both first showed up in 2016. He described them both as loud, orange and, in his words, frankly annoying. It was a setup that tied Hanks' original sketch to Trump's own political arrival that same year, giving the joke a decade of shared history to work with.
From there, the sketch pivoted to its main punchline. After praising Hanks' acting, Johnson's Trump said, "Great ass. A great ass on Hanks." He kept going, saying he had recently taken up admiring men's backsides and adding, "Not that there's anything wrong with that, just that I might be gay." The bit followed up with an invented term, "gay dementia," explained through a pun about "de men" showing him their backsides. These were scripted lines delivered by a comedic impression, not real statements from the president during the broadcast.
Nicki Minaj parody adds a second layer to the Halloween sketch
The cold open then brought in Saidah Belo-Osagie playing Nicki Minaj, leaning into the rapper's recent public support for Trump and reports that she could land some kind of role in his political orbit. The sketch had Trump praising her loyalty to his cause while also cracking a joke about her appearance, including a line suggesting her backside might interest him more if it belonged to a man.
By folding Minaj into the bit, the writers stretched the sketch beyond a single joke about Trump and turned it into commentary on celebrities aligning themselves with his movement. Reports noted the segment mocked both her support for Trump and chatter about a possible press secretary role, though nothing in the available coverage confirms any such appointment was ever formally discussed or announced.
David S. Pumpkins origin story gives the joke its nostalgic punch
David S. Pumpkins first appeared on SNL back in 2016, with Hanks playing the strange, orange-suited character riding along a Halloween-themed attraction next to his two skeleton backup dancers. The character became an unlikely viral hit almost overnight, and Day and Moynihan reprising their skeleton roles in 2026 helped keep the visual gag exactly as fans remembered it.
The jokes about Trump admiring men's physiques were based on comments he has reportedly made in public recently about other men's bodies. Rather than treating the material as a serious political claim, the writers leaned into exaggeration, turning it into a running bit about an unexpected obsession that contrasts with Trump's usual tough-guy public image.
What the sketch signals heading into the midterms
Coverage from outlets including The Washington Post and Variety framed the cold open as a mix of Halloween nostalgia and election-season satire rather than a straight political attack. Entertainment writers focused heavily on Hanks' surprise return as the night's biggest moment, while also noting how the Minaj storyline widened the sketch's target beyond Trump alone.
No official reaction from Trump, the White House, Minaj or Hanks appeared in the reporting, and no future appearances or follow-up events tied to the sketch have been confirmed. What is clear is the timing: airing on Halloween night and landing as SNL's final cold open before the midterms gave the segment extra weight, blending a decade-old comedy bit with the political mood of the moment.
