In Saturday Night Live‘s “December to Remember Car Commercial,” a husband makes a major Christmas mistake.
No, it’s not gifting his wife a robe, nor getting his children a terrifying robot dog. This particular family was struck down by the annual sales event at their local Lexus dealership.
The sketch aired December 12, 2020, during an episode hosted by Timothée Chalamet. Season 46 cast member Beck Bennett played Nathan, husband of the very fashionable Kathy (Heidi Gardner). Marty Supreme star Chalamet was their son Matt, a teen who probably didn’t expect his Christmas morning to fall apart when he followed his parents outside to find a bright shiny new car with a big red bow.
“Nathan, you didn’t…” says Kathy. “Are you kidding me Nathan? Did you seriously buy a car without asking me? This is a major purchase!”
“Right, but it was a December to Remember, so…” Nathan protests, but Kathy goes on. “It’s a Lexus! We don’t have the money for this, Nathan,” she tells him.
That’s news to Chalamet’s Matt, and Kathy explains that Nathan hasn’t worked since last March.
“Covid has hit a lot of people hard, and I’m no exception,” he objects, but Kathy adds, “Nathan, you got fired in March 2019!”
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Timothée Chalamet played Beck Bennett and Heidi Gardner’s son in “December to Remember”
It soon becomes clear that Nathan has no idea how money works. He thought the entire car cost the downpayment of $3,999, and thinks an APR is pronounced “aper.” He’s also drinking at 9 a.m. and got his ear pierced to impress Matt’s girlfriend, but he’s got a good excuse for the big purchase.
“Yeah, well, it was beginning to look a lot like savings at my local Lexus dealer!” he snaps at an angry neighbor (Mikey Day) who just lent him $5,000. It certainly will be a December to Remember for this family, but most likely not for the reasons Nathan thought.
Watch “December to Remember Car Commercial” from Season 46, Episode 8 above, and stream every season of Saturday Night Live on Peacock anytime.
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Saturday Night Live returns on January 17 with a first-time Host
While Season 51’s taken a winter hiatus break following Ariana Grande’s five-star Christmas episode on December 20, the show returns midway through January.
Stranger Things star Finn Wolfhard is SNL‘s first Host of 2026, with rapper A$AP Rocky as Musical Guest. Check out the up-to-date list of Season 51 Hosts here.