Highs and lows: Woody Harrelson returns to SNL

Woody Harrelson appeared on Saturday Night Live (SNL) on Nov. 15 as a guest host, reminding audiences that this weekend marks, “almost to the day,” the 25th anniversary of his first time hosting the show in 1989, a significant moment in his career to be sure. According to Rolling Stone, Harrelson’s recent appearance also constituted a turning point for SNL --  writer Zach Dionne accused the show of churning out disappointing episodes in recent weeks. Harrelson’s comfortable and irreverent presence came as a much-needed breath of fresh air.

“This is what Season 40 looks like when it's on fire: an hour and a half of hilarious, half-insane sketches … and a host with range, grace and dead-on line delivery,” Dionne wrote.

But what, exactly, did Harrelson do to deserve such praise? Well, for one thing, he talked about drugs. Harrelson starts out by reminiscing about the year 1989, and -- naturally -- making fun of Taylor Swift’s new album by the same name.

“With all due respect to Miss Swift, I think I know a little bit more about 1989 than she does … Even if the memories are a little fuzzy --’cause of the drugs,” Harrelson joked.To prove it, he then sang a parody of Swift's music, assisted by Liam Hemsworth, Josh Hutcherson and Jennifer Lawrence (because, just in case anyone needed a reminder, “Mockingjay, Part 1” will be hitting theaters this Friday).

While Harrelson looked comfortable and affable onstage, his “Hunger Games” costars seemed noticeably less so, particularly Jennifer Lawrence, who stood by awkwardly as joke after joke fizzled. A boring start to the evening, it might have been better to leave the Mockingjay at home for this one, especially considering the ill-concealed publicity stunt behind her inclusion. Thankfully, the “Hunger Games” crew did not linger long, but were quickly replaced by the amazingly talented (not to mention manic) guest performer Kendrick Lamar, who drew far more cheers later in the episode.

For his part, it seemed that Harrelson could do no wrong, as audiences continued to crack up at sketch after well-executed sketch, despite the actor's self-deprecating promise: “I’m telling you guys, I smoked a lot of herb before I came here tonight.” And the drug references did not end there. A later segment poked fun at the new NYPD policy under which citizens will no longer be arrested for carrying under 25 grams of marijuana. The sketch features Harrelson, wearing a wig of blonde dreadlocks, as he leads a group of euphoric weed-lovers down the streets of New York, only to be crushed when they are told that yes, they can have their baggies, but no, they still cannot smoke in public.

Whether or not Harrelson meant it when he admitted to doing cocaine in the eighties, the drug references are evidently working for him now. This positive reception is especially notable at a time when, after the tragic deaths of Cory Montieth and Philip Seymour Hoffman (another “Hunger Games” actor), celebrity drug use just doesn’t feel funny. Thankfully for SNL, though, the mixture of lighthearted jokes and snappy political commentary delivered by Harrelson seems to have skirted the darker side of this tricky subject, or at least won audiences over. For better or worse, the controversial material seems to have garnered far more belly laughs than furrowed brows.