The members of the comedy group Please Don’t Destroy have been creating funny videos and sketches for years, even before they joined Saturday Night Live in 2021. However, the trio — which consists of Ben Marshall, John Higgins and Martin Herlihy — may be best known for their viral “Three Sad Virgins” sketch, in which Pete Davidson and Taylor Swift teamed up to roast the writers for their perceived lack of sexual experience. Even two years later, the comedians said they were as surprised as anyone that the Eras Tour artist was game to roast them so harshly.
The comedy troupe — who are set to release their original Peacock movie Please Don't Destroy: The Treasure Of Foggy Mountain on November 17 — recalled their big “Three Sad Virgins” moment on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. John Higgins opened up about asking Taylor Swift to do the video, as she was serving as the musical guest for that week in 2021. He admitted:
We didn’t think that she would do it. Dan Bulla, who wrote it with us, was like, ‘We should have Taylor Swift do it,’ and we were like, ‘Yeah, obviously.’ But we pitched it to her, and we were like, ‘It’s called Three Sad Virgins, it’s you and Pete making fun of us,’ and she was immediately like, ‘Yes.’ She was like, ‘I get that about you guys.’
Taylor Swift added gravitas to the already-hilarious premise, making a big viral moment for Please Don’t Destroy, who was at the beginning of their Saturday Night Live careers at that point. Unfortunately the reputation established in the song has continued to haunt them, as John Higgins continued:
Now every time we’re on the street, it’s like, ‘Hey, sad virgin!’ Which is, like, it’s not even true. We’re not sad.
In addition to Taylor Swift's contribution, Pete Davidson was vital to the sketch, with his relationship history that includes celebrities like Kim Kardashian, Ariana Grande and Kaia Gerber. He most recently appears to be dating Outer Banks star Madelyn Cline after breaking up with Chase Sui Wonders in August. “Three Sad Virgins” centered around the modern-day lothario, who rapped about how different he is from the “tall and weird and sad” trio.
Then Taylor Swift came in with her own scathing verse, in which she sang that Ben Marshall looked like “Big Bird lost all his feathers,” said Martin Herlihy had the “sex appeal of a scarecrow” and called John Higgins’ head a “big fat melon.” In fact, the whole sketch is worth a rewatch, which you can do below:
That sketch is a classic, and I’m glad that Taylor Swift recognized how funny it would turn out. You can see more of Please Don’t Destroy by streaming The Treasure of Foggy Mountain with a Peacock subscription starting November 17, and in the meantime, check out all of the confirmed Saturday Night Live Season 49 hosts and musical guests.
