A memorable sketch tackled what happens when cutting-edge technology ends up disappointing Grandma.
Last night’s Saturday Night Live addressed the growing frustration with a technology that’s seemingly found its way into every American industry, even dishwashers. One of the first sketches of the night had Ashley Padilla as an elderly woman whose grandchildren went to visit her in a retirement center. As a surprise, her grandson (Marcello Hernández) had downloaded a program that used artificial intelligence to animate old photography, and had uploaded some of her treasured childhood photos. (This is a real service, and one that already served as the premise for an episode of Black Mirror.)
At first, Padilla was overjoyed to see her father (played by the night’s host, Glen Powell, who threw himself into every sketch) smiling and waving, looking young again. But it wasn’t long before things went wrong, as the next photo animation found Padilla’s mother (Veronika Slowikowska) smoking a hot-dog-like a cigarette while Powell tried to roast Sadie, the family dog (which, incidentally, didn’t have a head) on the grill.
