Paul Rudd hosts ‘SNL’ sans audience, Charli XCX amid omicron

By MALLIKA SEN
Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — People’s Sexiest Man Alive of 2021 Paul Rudd has been inducted into the vaunted Five-Timers Club on “Saturday Night Live,” but the surging omicron variant of the coronavirus meant there was no live audience to see it happen. Instead, viewers at home saw new sketches taped earlier in the week, as well as highlights from years past. British pop star Charli XCX was scheduled to be the night’s musical guest. But she announced Saturday afternoon that she would not be allowed to perform, citing the limited crew for the taping. This was the last episode of the NBC show for 2021.