NEVER IN MY LIFE DID I THINK I WOULD SEE BAD BUNNY AS QUICO FROM "EL CHAVO DEL OCHO," BUT THANK GOD "SNL" MADE IT HAPPEN
El Chavo Del Ocho is one of those shows that, if you tried to explain it, it would make you sound like a humongous liar. It's iconic.
If you did not gasp, stop breathing, and start freaking out when that theme song started playing on Saturday night, let me explain. El Chavo Del Ocho was a Mexican sitcom that aired all across Latin America and Spain in the '70s about a little boy, his friends who live in this housing complex, and the hijinks that ensues in their little neighborhood.
This show was HUGE, and is still a major cultural touchstone. And, even if you didn't grow up while it was airing, chances are that if you're Latine, you've probably seen a couple episodes of this fever dream of a show.
In the SNL sketch, Marcello Hernández played El Chavo, who is originally played by the show's creator, Roberto Gómez Bolaños, AKA Chespirito. His friends, La Chilindrina and Quico were originally played by María Antonieta de las Nieves and Carlos Villagrán. In the sketch, they're played by Sarah Sherman and Bad Bunny, the guest host.
![]()
Of course, the big difference was that the original show was fully in Spanish, and the Saturday Night Live version was performed in English. But, even so, this sketch transported us back into the neighborhood of El Chavo.
![]()
From the costumes:
![]()
To that nostaglic set, complete with El Chavo's barrel:
![]()
The constant slapstick humor:
![]()
And, most importantly, the insane way that all of these characters cry:
![]()
Every part of this sketch makes it clear that it was done with care, and a great sense of reverence for this piece of Latine media that has played in households all across the world. On TikTok, the sketch has garnered almost 24 million views, and 3.4 million likes. It's clear that people are LOVING it.
![]()
Thank you, Marcello Hernández and Bad Bunny for keeping our nostaglic little hearts fed this Latine Heritage Month. Next year, I'm pulling for a remake of El Gordo y la Flaca.
2025-10-07T18:29:56Z
