Ryan Gosling leans into SNL's surreal 'Otezla' pharma-ad parody

Ryan Gosling, in his fourth episode as host on March 7, embraced surreal comedy in Saturday Night Live's "Otezla" parody commercial. The Project Hail Mary star pushed the sketch into odd territory, playing a sunny jogger in a spot that mimics the rhythms of a pharmaceutical ad.

The sketch hits familiar beats: an attractive man (Gosling) works out while others describe how their condition holds them back, including a nightclub scene with Jeremy Culhane. A spokeswoman, Ashley Padilla, admits, 'We don't know what Otezla is, or how it got here,' and a schoolteacher (Sarah Sherman) adds that 'we do know that it treats plaque psoriasis and that we can't stop it.' The jogger suggests Otezla works fast and even muses that plaque psoriasis might be its food.

Padilla's voiceover declares that 'Otezla has no known weaknesses or vulnerabilities, and cannot be created or destroyed,' as on-screen scientists puzzle over the substance.

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