SNL sketch brings GTA 6’s Jason and Zelda’s Link together on Weekend Update

• Marcello Hernández played Jason and Mikey Day played Link, with Colin Jost and Michael Che at the desk.
• The episode was hosted by Dakota Johnson, with Turnstile as musical guest.

What happened

Saturday Night Live aired a Weekend Update segment on October 4, 2026, featuring two video game characters: Jason Duval from Grand Theft Auto 6 and Link from The Legend of Zelda. In the sketch, Marcello Hernández and Mikey Day played the two roles, while Colin Jost and Michael Che appeared as the Weekend Update hosts at the desk. The official SNL account also shared a clip on X that same day, describing the segment as “The protagonists from Legend of Zelda and GTA6 stop by the Update desk”.

According to IGN’s reporting, the sketch ran for about six minutes. The description included jokes about stealing cars, buying RPGs, and solving puzzles in Hyrule. The source material also says the episode was hosted by Dakota Johnson and featured Turnstile as the musical guest. The same reporting mentions a possible Taylor Swift cameo, but that appearance is not separately confirmed in the evidence available here.

The sketch was shared online as part of SNL’s regular Weekend Update segment, which often places current topics or familiar figures into a comedic setting. In this case, the show brought together two characters from major game franchises: Jason Duval from GTA 6 and Link from Zelda. The available source material confirms that SNL put the two characters together on Weekend Update, but not that the sketch was explicitly presented on-air as a direct comparison between GTA 6 and an Ocarina of Time remake. That framing comes from IGN’s reporting and is not separately confirmed by a transcript.

Background

The sketch paired two major game franchises: Grand Theft Auto 6 and The Legend of Zelda. Jason Duval is a character from GTA 6, while Link has been the face of Nintendo’s Zelda series for decades. By placing them together on Weekend Update, SNL put two recognizable gaming icons into a format usually built around news and satire.

The available source material confirms that the sketch aired on October 4, 2026, and that the official SNL account posted a clip on X that same day. The @nbcsnl post explicitly refers to the two characters as “the protagonists from Legend of Zelda and GTA6,” making the connection clear from SNL’s own side. The source material also says the sketch ran for about six minutes, giving a concrete sense of the segment’s length.

IGN’s reporting adds more detail about the content. According to that source, the sketch included jokes about stealing cars, buying RPGs, and solving puzzles in Hyrule. That fits the contrast between the two franchises: GTA 6 centers on crime and open-world action, while The Legend of Zelda is known for adventure, puzzles, and fantasy elements. However, the available source material does not confirm that the sketch was explicitly introduced on-air as a comparison between GTA 6 and an Ocarina of Time remake. That specific framing remains an interpretation of the reporting rather than a directly verified quote.

The mention of Taylor Swift should also be treated carefully. The provided source material says there may have been a surprise cameo, but there is no separate confirmation in the evidence supplied here. So it can only be said that the cameo is mentioned in reporting, not that it is firmly established by the available sources.

Social reactions in the source set show that the sketch sparked discussion online. A post from @ThatWeekInSNL called the execution “utterly baffling” and criticized the sketch as repeating an old stereotype about gamers. That is a specific reaction from the source set, but it remains one opinion rather than a full measure of audience response. The available evidence therefore supports that the sketch drew attention and criticism, but not that it captures the entire fan reaction.

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Sources

• IGN: article about the SNL sketch with Jason and Link
• X/Twitter: official post from @nbcsnl about the Weekend Update segment