Aimee Lou Wood Slams SNL's 'White Lotus' Parody for Mocking Her Teeth: Calls Sketch 'Mean and Unfunny'

SNL’s 'White Potus' Parody Ruffles Feathers

Comedians love pushing boundaries, but sometimes the joke doesn't land the way they hope. That’s exactly what happened after Saturday Night Live (SNL) aired its April 12, 2025 episode, featuring a parody called White Potus. The sketch mashed up HBO’s hit The White Lotus with a lineup of political figures, giving viewers a mock-resort full of Trumps, Bidens, and more. The late-night send-up seemed ripe for laughs—until it took a turn that hit one of its real-life inspirations a bit too hard.

Aimee Lou Wood, who plays Chelsea in The White Lotus Season 3, wasn’t laughing. She watched as SNL cast member Sarah Sherman portrayed Chelsea with prosthetic teeth so exaggerated they bordered on cartoonish. For most people, it’s just a silly gag. But for Wood, the bit felt personal. She’s spoken up before about being bullied for her teeth as a teen—and seeing them blown up for laughs on national TV cut deep.

On Instagram, Wood didn’t mince words. “Yes, take the piss for sure—that's what the show is about—but there must be a cleverer, more nuanced, less cheap way?” she wrote on her Stories, calling the skit “mean and unfunny.” She recognized SNL thrives on parody and satire, but questioned why the joke had to zero in on a feature that’s been a source of real-life pain.

Comedic Boundaries and Growing Pushback

SNL’s White Potus sketch went for big targets—Donald Trump and his family, played up for their quirks and quirks—but it was Sarah Sherman’s exaggerated teeth, an obvious swipe at Wood, that sparked an uproar. The joke might have gotten a shrug in years past, but times have changed. Today, comedians walk a finer line between poking fun and outright bullying, especially when physical features and past traumas are in play.

Castmate Bowen Yang stepped up publicly, backing Wood’s reaction. That support did not go unnoticed. With Yang echoing her feelings, the debate spilled beyond Hollywood and into fan circles online. Was the SNL sketch just edgy fun, or did it cross the line by mocking a physical trait known to be a sore spot?

• SNL has prided itself on skewering pop culture and politics, often with sharp edges.
• This time, the focus on Aimee Lou Wood’s teeth struck a nerve, raising questions about how satire can still sting off-screen.
• Sarah Sherman’s played for discomfort before, but the real-life impact on the person being parodied brought the issue home.

The whole flap didn’t just rattle showbiz folks. It got audiences thinking about what’s fair game. Wood asked for more nuanced, “cleverer” comedy—something that roasts but doesn’t reduce real people to a single physical feature. The story blurs those old comedy lines and puts SNL’s legendary satirical style under a fresh spotlight.