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Alec Baldwin, who reprised his goofy portrayal of Donald Trump opposite Jim Carreyâs Joe Biden on âSaturday Night Liveâ last weekend, shot back Sunday at âthe perception weâre mocking [the president] while heâs sick.â
Responding to criticism that the cold open lampooning the first debate was insensitive, Baldwin explained himself on Instagram. (Fast forward below to the 6:30 mark for the bulk of his argument.)
A few jokes subtly alluded to the presidentâs COVID-19 diagnosis. But Baldwin said that if Trump were gravely ill, the show âwouldnât go near that.â His doctor and spokespeople were giving upbeat updates on him, suggesting he wasnât in real danger, Baldwin noted.
âWe only have their word to go by,â the actor said. âAnd if their word had been that he was in serious trouble, then we probably wouldnât have done it. ... I can assure you we wouldnât have done it.â
In the sketch, Baldwinâs loopy Trump at one point says, âThe China virus has been very mean to me in being a hoax,â adding, âThat statement will probably come back to haunt me.â
Carreyâs Biden declares: âI believe in science and karma. Now just imagine if science and karma could somehow team up to send us all a message about how dangerous this virus can be. Looking at Trump, he adds, âIâm not saying I want it to happen. Just imagine it did.â
As for the show skewering Trump for his combativeness and interruptions during the debate, that was fair game, Baldwin said.
âWe thought the debate was something topical, and we didnât have anything with him in a hospital bed,â Baldwin said. âYouâd have to have a very good reason to avoid that, topicality-wise, and nobody thought that they were mocking somebodyâs illness by doing that.â
The New York Postâs Johnny Oleksinski was among those not impressed.
âAnybody who thought âSaturday Night Liveâ might choose sensitivity in the wake of President Trump being diagnosed with COVID-19 was proven wrong immediately during the showâs uncomfortable Season 46 premiere,â the critic wrote in his review.
âWas the awkwardness of sending up a 74-year-old man who is hospitalized with a deadly new virus worth it? Hardly,â he added.
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