Jenna Ortega And Fred Armisen Remade The Parent Trap On SNL, And Lindsay Lohan Responded

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It's hard to play a twin when your stand-in doesn't exactly act like you.

Fred Armisen and Jenna Ortega sitting on a bed and talking during an SNL sketch.
(Image credit: Saturday Night Live/ NBC)

Wednesday star Jenna Ortega may not have been alive when The Parent Trap remake with Lindsay Lohan first came out, but that didn’t stop her from delivering a remake that was spot-on tonally on Saturday Night Live last night. Okay, maybe it wasn’t exactly the same, but that was mostly because, after her stand-in called in sick, Ortega was forced to act alongside returning SNL legend Fred Armisen, who read the lines as if he was playing her twin sister in the remake.

The hilarious sketch went over very well with the audience and played strongly on social media too. It’s the most popular non-Weekend Update, non-monologue segment from the show on YouTube, and it’s easy to see why. You can check out the extreme awkwardness below…

First of all, the 1998 remake of The Parent Trap, led by Lindsay Lohan and directed by Nancy Meyers, is a banger (even if not all of it makes sense), and that movie still holds up so well. It, of course, features numerous scenes in which Lohan acts opposite herself, though I'd have to imagine her shooting experience was less awkward. If you've never seen it before, I can think of few better ways to spend a lazy Sunday than by throwing that movie on. You can check it out with a Disney+ subscription. 

Second of all, I love this sketch because it's obvious it was written by people who love The Parent Trap. The little details like her shirt are a nice touch, and there are just enough updates that it feels like this could conceivably be another remake being made for modern audiences. Also, shoutout to Fred Armisen for hilariously saying the remake must be for streaming if the parents are played by Ed Helms and Leslie Mann. Love both of them, but that just seems accurate.

If you need further evidence of how well the sketch worked, look no further than original star Lindsay Lohan. The popular actress took to her Instagram account after the skit aired to voice her approval. She posted a short clip on her stories, along with heart emojis and the word "Bravo." You can check out a screenshot below...

Lindsay Lohan puts heart emojis and Bravo text over an SNL Parent Trap sketch.

(Image credit: Lindsay Lohan/ Instagram)


Following Jenna Ortega's episode, Saturday Night Live will be on hiatus for a few weeks. The popular sketch comedy show will return on April 1st with Quinta Brunson from Abbott Elementary as host and Lil Yachty as musical guest. It'll be Brunson's first time delivering the monologue in Studio 8H, and fans are already pumped. Beyond that, we should see several more new episodes before the end of the season, though those upcoming SNL hosts haven't been announced yet. 

Mack Rawden
Editor In Chief

Mack Rawden is the Editor-In-Chief of CinemaBlend. He first started working at the publication as a writer back in 2007 and has held various jobs at the site in the time since including Managing Editor, Pop Culture Editor and Staff Writer. He now splits his time between working on CinemaBlend’s user experience, helping to plan the site’s editorial direction and writing passionate articles about niche entertainment topics he’s into. He graduated from Indiana University with a degree in English (go Hoosiers!) and has been interviewed and quoted in a variety of publications including Digiday. Enthusiastic about Clue, case-of-the-week mysteries, a great wrestling promo and cookies at Disney World. Less enthusiastic about the pricing structure of cable, loud noises and Tuesdays.