Yet, curiously, no one involved with Saturday’s “SNL” episode seemed to have the desire to participate in it or play with him. After a passable cold-open sketch about Friday’s Democratic forum on MSNBC (a sketch that didn’t require Trump, but did feature Larry David’s second appearance this season as Bernie Sanders, the show’s lone buzzworthy invention so far this year), the cast members telegraphed an awkward vibe of reluctance when it came to performing on stage with the bombastic billionaire. Even jokes about their awkwardness being around him fell flat.

“I don’t want to be in this sketch anymore,” said Vanessa Beyer, who played a sad-looking boy accordionist during a bit in which an off-stage Trump pretended to tweet mean comments about the performers. (Beyer’s sentiment was a joke, but it didn’t feel like one. It felt like truth.) The show’s writers also dropped the ball — or simply never felt like playing to begin with. Who can blame them? They never should have been put in this position.