Has JD Vance ever been parodied on Saturday Night Live? (Who played him?)

JD Vance has dominated the news cycle since he was announced as Donald Trump's running mate. Vance was already a controversial presence within popular culture, given his memoir, Hillbilly Elegy, and the film it inspired, but he's become a proverbial meme magnet since becoming a VP hopeful.

The memes that JD Vance has inspired, particularly with regards to his alleged, erm, affinity, for couches, has made him a trending social media topic throughout the month of July. Vance's first public appearance after being announced as Trump's running mate was also widely panned by commentators on both sides of the political aisle.

JD Vance has never been portrayed on SNL

We say all this to say: JD Vance is going to be a prime target for Saturday Night Live when it returns for season 50. Trump notwithstanding, Vance is the kind of lightning rod for mockery that SNL has built a lot of its political comedy on, dating back to the 1970s.

Bizarrely enough, JD Vance has never been depicted on SNL. The politician has not had the honor (or dishonor) of being played by a cast member in a sketch. This is sure to change, however, when the show resumes. A lot of SNL attention has gone to Kamala Harris, and whether Emmy winning alum Maya Rudolph will return to play her in season 50, but the question of who will play Vance is far less concrete.

Fans think Mikey Day will play Vance in season 50

TV Line reporter Ryan Schwartz issued a poll on Threads on July 15. He asked users who they think will play JD Vance out of the current cast members, and the answer, overwhelmingly, was Mikey Day. Granted, Day already plays Joe Biden, but given that Biden is no longer running for President, the veteran cast member will have plenty of time to focus on the VP candidate.

SNL cast member Michael Longfellow was also thrown out as a possible Vance doppelgänger, but the fan favorite choice, outside of the realm of members, has been actor Paul Walter Hauser. Hauser is a natural comedic talent, as evidenced by his turns in Super Troopers 2 (2018) and the sketch series I Think You Should Leave (which stars SNL alum Tim Robinson).

Hauser also bears enough of a physical resemblance to Vance to sell the notion that he's doing an outsized impression of the politician. The jury is still out, of course, but we're excited to see which direction SNL decides to go in. Either way, it'll be entertaining.