The Pitt stars were called at midnight to appear in SNL’s viral MAHA sketch, but the deal fell through, and what happened next was even better

Stars from the hit medical drama The Pitt were almost part of a viral Saturday Night Live sketch, but a last-minute issue led to a different kind of experience. Patrick Ball, who plays Dr. Frank Langdon on the HBO series, revealed that he and co-star Isa Briones were invited to appear in SNL’s parody of the show, which ended up starring that week’s guest host, Harry Styles.

Ball told TODAY that he got a call “late, late, midnight, the night before” SNL was set to film the skit. They were trying to get him and Briones, who plays Dr. Trinity Santos, into the sketch. But it didn’t work out, because there wasn’t enough time to go through the proper channels and get the appearance cleared.

However, SNL still invited Ball and Briones to watch the sketch from creator Lorne Michaels’ office. Ball mentioned that they got to see Lorne’s office, complete with all the index cards and the full rundown for the show.

Missing the sketch turned out to be less of a loss than it seemed

The SNL sketch was a parody of The Pitt, reshaped to reflect the ideals of the “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) movement, championed by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The skit reimagined the show as “MAHA Hospital,” featuring SNL cast member James Austin Johnson as RFK Jr. Harry Styles played the hospital’s main doctor, channeling the lead character from The Pitt, played by Noah Wyle.

The voiceover for the fake trailer declared, “For people who love The Pitt, but can’t stand its phony liberal science.” The sketch took jabs at right-wing medical advice, with Styles’ character calling a patient who is up to date on his vaccines a “loser.” 

In another moment, the fake RFK Jr. tells his staff he’s “proud” of them for treating patients with raw milk and energy healing. RFK Jr. has continued to draw criticism on health-related issues, and his shifting position on pesticides has alarmed MAHA supporters.

After watching the show, Ball and Briones went to the after-party, where they met Harry Styles. Ball said that Briones completely lost her cool. He also praised Styles’ performance in the sketch, saying, “I have never seen an audience become so spellbound in my life. Like, he walked in, and people just went into a trance. It was unbelievable.”

Ball called the entire sketch “amazing.” The Pitt is currently in its second season and has been sweeping award shows while earning strong reviews. It has also become HBO’s most-watched original series this year. 

In other news making waves recently, a decades-long death row conviction being overturned has raised serious questions about the justice system. So while Ball and Briones missed out on being in the sketch, they still walked away with a memorable behind-the-scenes SNL experience.