Adam Driver gives hilarious impersonation of an 'airplane baby' having a tantrum on 'SNL'
"I work with babies around that age and this was 100% baby representation at its finest."
Adam Driver pretends to be an "airplane baby" on Saturday Night Live
Who among us hasn’t witnessed a baby temper tantrum on a plane? Ever wonder what that distraught toddler’s inner monologue might be?
Well, wonder no more—thanks to Adam Driver.
The “Ferrari” star returned for his fourth stint as host during “Saturday Night Live”’s Dec. 9th episode, where he played multiple fun roles, including a very cheeky chocolatier, a partner in a gay couple trying to conceive a baby “the old fashioned way” and a mustached pot luck host whose catch phrase (“beep, beep”) can go from wholesome to foreboding on a dime.
But the sketch that most people seem to be talking about is “Airplane Baby,” where, you guessed it, Driver embodies a newborn on a plane…and his performance captures the id of an infant with almost eerie accuracy.
In the scene, we see Sarah Sherman, who plays Driver’s mommy, explaining to passengers that this is her son’s first flight and apologizes in advance.
When a passenger (Heidi Gardner) asks how old the baby is, the camera cuts to reveal Driver—or at least, his head, which is atop a baby doll’s body—saying, “11 months.” This baby is already quite disgruntled.
Things only get worse for Baby Driver as he starts to get a “strange” feeling in his ears, which can only be soothed by his iPad. Or his “‘Peppa Pig’ device,” as he prefers to call it.That relief is cut short when the flight attendant, played by Chloe Troast, approaches drink orders.
“Who is that woman? She’s not my mother. Now I’m feeling confused and uncomfortable and frankly, I miss the womb!” Driver wails before bursting into a crying fit. Luckily, that too is remedied, this time by a bottle.
The rest of the skit is a roller coaster of emotion. Fixation on fitting his arm into his mouth, followed by delight with his “Pookie bear,” then utter anguish when Pookie bear goes away, then elation when Pookie bear returns once more…all rolling into a dirty diaper situation.
Besides loving how delightfully silly his performance was, people applauded Driver for his commitment which added a level of authenticity to the sketch. More than one person commented on how well he captured what must be going through a baby’s mind as they are thrust into new and uncomfortable situations, and how freely they express their emotions.
“Adam's baby behaviors are so realistic, it's like he's studied them somehow,” one person wrote.
Another added, “I work with babies around that age and this was 100% baby representation at its finest. Such smooth transition between the peek a boo and large poop. The scream after poop is optional, but I liked how Adam D delivered it.”
Full sketch below. Warning: you might never look at babies on a plane the same way again.
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