Molly Shannon Spilled The Beans On Jennifer Aniston Hosting (And The Ring She Wore On SNL When She Was Still Married To Brad Pitt)

Lots of current and former Saturday Night Live cast members have been reminiscing about the past 50 years, as the sketch comedy celebrates its 50th season on the 2025 TV schedule. Fans have been indulging in everything from the best SNL clips on YouTube to SNL audition horror stories, and now Molly Shannon is sharing her memory of when Friends star Jennifer Aniston hosted. Turns out the Friends star’s jewelry made quite an impression!

The Saturday Night Live Season 50 hosts and musical guests are a pretty impressive bunch, but when Jennifer Aniston hosted back in her Friends days, she was a pretty big deal, too. The actress who portrayed Rachel Green on one of the best sitcoms of all time certainly was a hit with Molly Shannon, as the former cast member recalled to People that Aniston was “just easygoing and really fun.” She said:

Jennifer Aniston hosted Saturday Night Live twice — in 1999 and 2004 — and it’s not made exactly clear which of those appearances Molly Shannon was referring to. The Other Two actress was a regular cast member from 1995 to 2001, but when Aniston made her SNL debut, she and Brad Pitt were not married yet, just engaged.

When The Morning Show star returned five years later, she was married to the Fight Club star (they announced their separation in January 2005), and she did sport a pretty impressive sparkler on her right ring finger. (Sincerest of apologies to Ms. Aniston that the best image I can find of said sparkler has her holding a box of the faux genital herpes medication Privolin.)

Either way, it sounds like Molly Shannon might have been a little star-struck over meeting the “very laid back” Friends star, but she recognized Jennifer Aniston’s ease on an SNL set that I’d imagine is pretty intimidating for its celebrity hosts.

Saturday Night Live has that in common with the NBC sitcom, as Jennifer Aniston has talked about even the most famous celebrities to guest star on Friends being terrified during the filming experience. Days of Our Lives star Alison Sweeney recalled being intimidated and just hoping she gave them what they want, while Brooke Shields felt the need to break the ice by turning one of Matthew Perry’s NSFW pranks back on him.

Friends may have been a well-oiled machine, but nobody can argue with the expertise of Lorne Michaels and the comedians he’s surrounded himself with for the past 50 years.

This astonishing achievement will be celebrated with the live three-hour Saturday Night Live 50th Anniversary special airing at 8 p.m. ET Sunday, February 16, on NBC and streaming with a Peacock subscription. The anniversary special is a big mystery, but at the very least I think we can expect lots of performers and others associated with SNL to make an appearance.