Throwback Vid Of Trump On SNL Accidentally Predicted His Future Fake Tan Fails

It's difficult to remember a time when not all of President Donald Trump's most recognizable and joke-inducing qualities were public knowledge. However, one of President Trump's pre-White House television appearances unintentionally created a mockup of what would become one of the commander in chief's most infamous traits.

President Trump showed a side of himself some viewers may not have been familiar with hosting a 2004 episode of "Saturday Night Live." Between turning his own show, "The Apprentice," into a sketch and masquerading as comedian Seth Meyers' dad, the future president also parodied his business endeavors and brand recognition in a skit advertising the fictional eatery "Donald Trump's House of Wings" in the style of a campy '80s-era commercial. Trump put on his signature stoic businessman face and showed off some of his awkward dance moves while surrounded by performers singing and bopping around him in chicken suits. He turned up the heat promising fictional offerings that could scare away even the bravest spice enthusiasts. 

"At Donald Trump's House of Wings, you can get them with five levels of hotness: Regular, hot, three alarm, suicidal, and hell spawn," he said in the bit, which resurfaced on X in April 2025. The businessman's pitch was accompanied by cartoonish animations of his face gradually getting redder and more anguished with each flavor. Though not as orangey as his modern skin hue, his extreme color evolution in the skit provided comedic visuals modern viewers could look back on as surreal precursors to his real-life makeup woes.

Like several other celebrities and public figures, President Donald Trump volunteered himself as a comedic punching bag on "Saturday Night Live" to possibly seem more human and approachable to the general public. Such was the case when he returned to Studio 8H, this time as a presidential candidate, for another hosting gig in 2015. While some people may have found his bits genuinely funny and glowing representations of his supposed relatability, some people think they negatively reflect on his authority as a politician. "Hey @realDonaldTrump what a fool you look," one X user commented on the wing shop sketch in 2025. They continued, "so this is what America thinks is the best person to run the country."

The president, of course, is no longer the source behind his own ridicule on the show. His endless presidential duties would obviously prevent him from doing so, and such self-directed humor is more than likely beyond his fragile ego's comprehension. As such, he's since been imitated by several performers, including Darrell Hammond, Alec Baldwin, and James Austin Johnson. The spoofs from the 2010s and beyond show the president as people knew him during his political career. Thus, each rendition alludes to his awful spray tan, which is created with cartoonishly orange makeup. Though Trump's 2004 hosting gig merely offered an unknowing sneak peek at what would be his eventual look, his future portrayals have since embraced his complexion as a prime source of fodder.