'SNL' Perfectly Exposes Motherhood Expectations vs. IRL in Amy Schumer Skit
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Amy Schumer/Instagram
Saturday Night Live, like the rest of us, took this weekend to celebrate some of the most incredible people on earth—moms—and we can't get over one skit that perfectly highlights how the role is portrayed vs. what really goes down. All we can say is bravo Amy Schumer. We can't believe you aren't a mom yourself, because you nailed this sketch.
The bit opens with Schumer sleeping in a gorgeous bedroom—her hair is perfect, she is in beautiful pajamas amongst a clean calm room. (The farthest thing from reality.) A gentle "Good morning honey!" as her husband and son delivery breakfast wakes her from an angelic sleep. (Cue the birds chirping and the sun shining.) Schumer, who is thankful for her family starts to explain the best day of her life—the day her son was born.
In an instant, we flashback to Schumer in the hospital room about to give birth, screaming, sweating, crying—she yells, "Oh my god, how much bigger can the hole get?!"
As Schumer snaps back to the calmness of present-day her son asks, "Were you scared mommy?" Of course, as all mothers do, she denies any fears and claims she, "had a big smile on her face the whole time." The bit jumps back to the birth scene where the doctors announce she will need an episiotomy, in which she begs, "Oh no, don't cut my butthole in half," while her husband cowers in the corner and Schumer repeatedly tells him he isn't being a man—the whole back in forth has us in hysterical tears.
The scene keeps flipping from Schumer's present-day description of "a little push" and the flashback of Schumer saying all types of crude things to her doctor like, "Where have you been you stupid whore?" along with making fart noises and all the other pleasantries of birth IRL, down to seeing her child for the first time and crying over how ugly he is.
We can't stop laughing at how graphic and traumatic every mom's best day ever really is. The narrative continues as a calm and composed Schumer tells her son how every day since his birth has gotten easier and easier, over a cache of diaper changings that result in pee hitting her in the face, breastfeeding on the toilet as the baby bites at her nipple, and the most relatable—her passed out on the messy living room couch as dad wakes her to ask where his hockey gear is. Oh ya, and the dad manages to squeeze in, "He woke up by the way," (with the soft cries of a baby in the background) before explaining how he plans to get a drink after practice. YUP, us moms know the struggle all too well.
The scene closes with Schumer's son hugger her, expressing his love, before telling her he, "had an accident last night." The job is seemingly never done—but, as all mothers would hope on their day, Schumer responds, "Oh well, I'm sure daddy cleaned it up." That's when her son rebuttals, "No, I wanted you to clean it." PURE GOLD.
It's almost like the writers of SNL were actually in our own homes that whole time, the skit is too accurate and slightly induces PTSD. At least the video ends with a thank you, as the closing card reads, "To all the moms in the world, thanks for pretending it was easy."
We couldn't have said it better ourselves. We love seeing this side of motherhood portrayed on TV because it's REAL. The narrative about motherhood should no longer portray the Betty Crocker mom, we deserve better than that. Luckily with films like Tully, which perfectly displays the messiness of motherhood while addressing a much-needed call for help, and skits such as this, mothers are getting the recognition they have earned basically since the beginning of time. Better late than never, right?
