Mr. Tumnus on SNL
James McAvoy appeared in costume as Mr. Tumnus on Saturday Night Live this weekend. Be aware that most of the dialogue is explicitly sexual. You can view the video here.
Skandar Keynes, Georgie Henley, and William Moseley tweeted about the skit.
McAvoy’s latest movie, Glass, is currently in theaters.
Thanks to McKenan for the alert.
The fact that this happened is news, but I don’t recommend wasting time on the video.
Sad and unfunny. We mock and sully everything. Disappointed that the actors didn't haven't more respect for what Narnia represents.
I was at first glad that Narnia is getting some press, but I don't think I want that kind of press. Just remember, in case this upsets you: the people who brought these books to life for the big screen may not believe everything the books stand for. We shouldn't be shocked by this; even great artists are never as beautiful as the pictures they paint.
Our focus here is Narnia and what it can potentially teach us, not the lives of people who have been involved with it.
(All that said, it WAS kind of nice to see Mr. Tumnus again.)
It's kind of nice that the first Narnia movie is a big enough part of our culture to be parodied in SNL. Maybe that means it's a classic or at least a minor one.
I'm not going to watch the video though. Saturday Night Live has little appeal for me. I'm not even a particular fan of McAvoy. Well, actually I guess I am in the sense that I think he's really good at his job. But I'm not the type of person who watches something just because an actor I appreciate is in it. If there's something I want to watch already and I hear they're in it, I'll think, "that's nice." But I won't watch something just because of an actor's involvement.
I'll give them this much. The makeup was pretty good for a quick SNL sketch.
"It’s kind of nice that the first Narnia movie is a big enough part of our culture to be parodied in SNL. Maybe that means it’s a classic or at least a minor one."
That's the main takeaway for me. At least Narnia hasn't been totally forgotten. The video is unavailable for Canadians and, given what others are saying, I probably won't waste my time trying to track it down.
Yeah, seriously guys, don't watch it. My wife was watching SNL on Hulu and was about to leave for a movie when I saw this sketch start, so of course I stuck around and watched it. I wish I hadn't. It's atrocious and disgusting, and it makes me glad that we'll never see McAvoy play Tumnus again.
The make-up and decor was pretty impressive for an SNL sketch. He looks quite close to how he looks in the film, absent from CGI legs.
Did I find the sketch funny? No. Those three girls were highly annoying. The Frodo reference got a small grin out of me, but the sketch is definitely not worth your time. But to say it is atrocious and disgusting, is a bit far fetched to me. Putting two things together that are not expected to go together is a way to create humor. This sketch did it with Narnia and sex, and to my opinion it did it poorly. But to say that it was insulting or disrespectful takes it a bit too far, for me.
Y’all. I chuckled at a few moments (lazy Hermione) and looking at Tumnus’ big goat legs was like a trip back to the BBC days. But it wasn’t that funny or clever. YET to call it disgusting? What was disgusting about it? Haha. Nahhhh. It was a stupid, not-so-clever SNL skit guest starring an actor trying to promote his new movie, Glass. We still have the movies. We still have the books. No need to be disgusted.
Also, I mean, doesn’t Tumnus being gay sound kind of perfect? (Jk, jk… kind of).
It seemed that it was poor taste. I don't think that kind of humor works works well with the deeply serious, thoughtful atmosphere of Narnia. I liked James McAvoy in playing Mr. Tumnus in The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe movie (he is a very fine actor), but this SNL skit was a bit too vulgar for me. I have never been a fan of SNL for that same reason. The series is very popular, but I just don't like that kind of humor, although I have not watched the show very often. Perhaps the skit is also somewhat disrespectful, but it probably is more in poor taste. I think much more highly of C. S. Lewis' clean humor in his own Narnia books. 🙂
You all should lighten up. This is comedy. The point is not to take it seriously. You're all taking this way too seriously.
I think the general consensus here is that this kind of comedy isn't funny. That's why everyone is serious.
I think when you see a comedy sketch or something along those lines that offends you, the best response is to haughtily ignore it. Complaining about it just draws attention to it and gives the makers the satisfaction of knowing they got a reaction out of somebody.
Not all of us watched the video, myself included. It's just a bit hard to ignore the fact that they used Narnia for this. Not that we need to get up in arms about it either; it's just a shame that they did this.
Well, it just seems kinda pointless. The creators and some of the audience clearly found it funny, although I can't say I'm surprised the reception on this site is different.
Ultimately, it's a good sign Narnia is part of the mainstream that anyone even remembers and makes a sketch like that. Mr. Tumnus kind of was James' breakout role in Hollywood, so since the show was about him it was kinda fitting they'd feature Narnia, even if you don't approve of the humor.
Personally, I think complaining about people being offended by something that doesn't offend you is just as pointless as complaining about something that offends you. 😉
And complaining about people complaining about people complaining is….
I haven’t seen this video so I can’t judge it. Still… I’ve thought about how The Horse and His Boy, if Disney and Walden had made it, would have included James McAvoy as Tumnus, who is much older in that story than he was in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. In fact, Georgie Henley is the same age now that Lucy must have been in HHB the book. So seeing the actors all grown up and older makes me wonder about the Disney Walden Narnia projects that never happened… and judging by the reception to this video, provably for the better. I’ve thought about this because James McAvoy army 39 looks a lot older now than he did back in 2005 at age 25. Or perhaps it’s because it’s my 25th birthday today and I feel old 🙂
Happy birthday!
I'm not sure if how people thought of this video reflects how we'd think of Tummus in HHB. It doesn't matter what the actor does in their own life so long as they do a good job in the movie.
I didn't like the video, but I think James McAvoy was good in the movie. If he would play the role of Tumnus again in another Narnia movie or TV series I think he would do fine. An SNL skit doesn't have that much importance in someone's acting career. I don't have high regard for SNL and its rather low vulgar humor so I think it would be better if McAvoy stayed away from that series.
I heard about this skit and had to come see what Narniaweb thought. I'm glad I'm not the only one who couldn't bring themselves to watch it. Does anyone remember back in 2008 there was a story about how Andrew Adamson asked James McAvoy if he wanted to do a cameo in Prince Caspian and James said something along the lines of not wanting to sit in the makeup chair for 3 hours to look like f-ing Shrek? That stuck with me, it was disappointing. Idk if he intended to be insulting or was just kidding around but if I was Andrew I'd definitely be taken aback. It always made me wonder if McAvoy doesn't look back on Narnia fondly at all.
Anyways I read a synopsis of the skit and it sounds really messed up. I'm all for parody but SNL isn't even close to funny anymore and I reaaaally wish they hadn't have touched Narnia. Gag.
That was the least funniest SNL sketch I've ever seen
Pfft Typical American god haters (I believe they call em liberals) trying to pervert cherished childhood memories, and anything that points to a loving creator. Meh move right along, nothing to see but some perverts.
"I think the general consensus here is that this kind of comedy isn’t funny. That’s why everyone is serious"
+1
I thought it was funny, I'm not surprised at the consensus here, however, some of you really need to find your funnybone. Also, there are liberals who love God, since God is liberal, after all.
Fruity birds.
Fruity birds you say?
Know em by their fruits and birds of a feather flock together.
Perverted gutter trash media deserves no more of my attention… So I shan't.