Aimee Lou Wood Was Right to Call Out SNL’s Cheap Joke — When Satire Misses, It Hurts Everyone

In today’s hyper-partisan climate, where nuance is often sacrificed for quick laughs or viral moments, the recent Saturday Night Live (SNL) sketch mocking The White Lotus actress Aimee Lou Wood has sparked a necessary conversation about the boundaries of comedy. The joke — which takes aim at Wood’s smile — may have aimed for satire, but it ended up revealing more about outdated stereotypes than clever commentary.

The skit in question blended a parody of the Trump administration with a spoof of The White Lotus, merging a character reminiscent of Wood with a conspiracy-tinged reference to fluoride. The punchline? The character, in a nod to Wood’s notable smile, acts baffled by the word “fluoride.” Cue laughter — but only briefly. Because what starts as a seemingly light jab quickly unravels into something mean-spirited and unfounded.

Let’s get one thing straight: fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral added to water and toothpaste to support oral health. So, implying that Wood’s teeth reflect ignorance or poor hygiene is not only factually incorrect, but dishonest. It leans on the tired trope of “British teeth,” a stereotype that has long overstayed its welcome.

Wood’s teeth, by all accounts, are healthy — and more importantly, they’re hers. The uniqueness of her smile has made her one of the most recognisable faces in global television today. Yet, instead of celebrating this authenticity, the SNL sketch fell back on lazy shorthand for a cheap laugh. Wood’s response was swift and accurate: she called the bit “mean and unfunny.”

And she’s right. Good comedy punches up. It reveals truths, challenges assumptions, and makes us laugh in recognition of shared realities. But when jokes depend on fallacies or reinforce cultural biases, they stop being clever and start being harmful. In this case, the writers didn’t just miss the mark — they also distracted from the real issues the sketch was supposed to tackle: anti-vaccine conspiracies, deportations, economic instability, and political dysfunction.

If audiences are left talking about someone’s teeth instead of those critical themes, then satire has failed. And when satire fails, everyone loses — especially the comedians who want to be taken seriously.