If you watch Saturday Night Live weekly, chances are you’ve seen the cast impersonating countless celebrities for nearly five decades. From Martha Stewart to former president Donald Trump to business mogul and former host Kim Kardashian and beyond, a plethora of famous faces have been parodied on the show at some point. One of the best modern-era impressionists to come from the late-night institution is former cast member Melissa Villaseñor, who lampooned plenty of celebs during her run. But there was at least one icon who didn’t wholeheartedly approve of Villaseñor's approach: global superstar Jennifer Lopez. It wasn't necessarily the comedian's performative take, either, but rather her background knowledge that the Grammy winner took issue with.
Villaseñor's six-season SNL run was notable for her taking on various entertainers such as Gwen Stefani and fellow SNL alum Kristen Wiig. And when JLo was serving as the host in 2019, it presented the impressionist the chance to deliver her take on the multihyphenate right to Lopez's face. While many viewers enjoyed her impression as it played out on-screen, the Marry Me star was amusingly less than impressed once the comedian showed off her imitation face to face. Villaseñor revealed to AV Club that Lopez’s perfectionism quickly shone through over one specific detail, saying:
My JLo impression is very specific. It is kind of the J. Lo that’s very serious. When I met J. Lo, I think I did my impression for her, and she was like, ‘I don’t see it.’ I love J. Lo. I mean, truly a legend. I was telling her, ‘Oh, maybe I can imitate you in a sketch. You know, I could walk around your house and pretend I’m like J. Lo and be like, my favorite color’s blue.’ And J. Lo grabbed me. She was like, ‘Baby, my favorite color is green. Everyone knows that.’
Ouch! The rookie mistake wasn’t the best way to impress the acting and music superstar. If you’re going to do a JLo impersonation in front of the queen herself, make sure you get her favorite color right. Even if Villaseñor would have intentionally gotten the color wrong as a part of her impression, still inadvisable.
Of course, Lopez is not above making fun of herself, having hosted the show four times, and having become a more candid and self-aware celeb as years have gone by. She just wanted Villaseñor to get the details right if the SNL star was going to play up her persona for jokes. Given Lopez’s objection, the sketch in question never made it past the pitch stage.
But that wasn’t the first time Villaseñor had brought out her JLo impression, as her early online sketches featured her particular portrayal of the Hustlers star. She even had the chance to bring her JLo impersonation the the SNL stage for a sketch with Octavia Spencer. In each case, the comedian nailed Lopez’s lite Bronx accent and her signature thoughtful speech pattern, easily capturing the essence of the “On the Floor” singer, even if she probably shouldn't write any in-depth biographies.
Viewers haven’t seen Villaseñor’s bag of impressions this season, as she was one of several cast members to leave before Season 48. That said, she's currently promoting her new book Whoops…I’m Awesome, which is available in stores and online. If you want to revisit Melissa Villaseñor’s years on Saturday Night Live, you can watch episodes through a Peacock subscription.
Check out all of the upcoming hosts as musical guests while waiting for Nope’s Keke Palmer to show off her innumerous talents, with musical guest SZA, on December 3.
