SNL Uses ‘Stranger Things’ to Address the Monsters of Police Brutality

A hilarious skit aired on Saturday Night Live drawing stark comparisons between the imagined Demogorgon monster of the popular Netflix series and the very real police officers who patrol Everytown, USA.

Originally published on Blavity by LaVita Tuff

Saturday Night Live answers the question of whether or not monsters truly exist in real life. Using the Netflix show, Stranger Things, the cast created a parody skit addressing police brutality.

Stranger Things is a science fiction horror story following the disappearance of a young boy as his friends search for clues involving his disappearance. The young boy’s mother and older brother also start their own investigation along with the police chief.

The skit starts by showing the three friends plotting to rescue the young boy. The parents of one of the friends played by Leslie Jones and Kenan Thompson are not happy with their son being out so late and give him grief about it. In response, he explains to his parents why he’s out late.

“But we have to find the Upside Down! It’s like the normal world, but scarier, and there’s danger at every turn.”

Jones and Thompson give their son a dose of reality.

“Baby, people who look like us already live in the Upside Down,” the parents tell their son. “You don’t have to go looking for scary stuff. It finds you.”

As the skit continues the police chief approaches the parents and their response is all too relatable. They scream while putting their hands up, “Ah! A monster!”.

With the rising number of blacks dying at the hands of police brutality, makes the issue difficult to ignore, even if you’re just enjoying Saturday night television.