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Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →“Googly Eyes Gardener” is an SNL sketch featuring Christopher Walken as a man who distrusts plants and tries to make them less intimidating by sticking googly eyes on them. The sketch aired during Walken’s episode on April 5, 2008; writer Eric Kenward later said its premise grew from something his grandmother did with her cactuses.
What happens in “Googly Eyes Gardener”?
Walken plays a gardener who is afraid of plants. He explains that cactuses can prick him, so he puts googly eyes on them. His logic is that looking someone in the eyes helps him know where he stands with them, while plants normally have no eyes to look back. The bit extends to googly-eyed ferns.
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The humor comes from treating an ordinary craft prop as a solution to an irrationally personal problem: the plants remain plants, but the character imagines that their new eyes make them easier to trust. It is a comic premise, not gardening or plant-safety advice.
Who wrote the sketch, and where did the idea come from?
Eric Kenward wrote the sketch. In a 2024 retrospective on The Lonely Island and Seth Meyers Podcast, Kenward said his grandmother put googly eyes on her cactuses. He wondered why people did that and arrived at the idea that eyes might make a dangerous-looking plant seem cute or relatable. He also recalled wanting reaction shots from things that could not react.
Kenward described the family connection this way: “This is something my grandma Kenward used to really do.”
When did it air, and where can you watch it?
The sketch appeared in the episode hosted by Christopher Walken on Saturday, April 5, 2008. NBC/SNL has an official clip page titled “Googly Eyes Gardener”. The Lonely Island and Seth Meyers Podcast episode page for its November 18, 2024 retrospective also links to the clip. Availability of the NBC page may vary by region.
Rank #2
- 12 DVDs of the best episodes from Seasons 1-5. Plus a 28-Page Collector’s Book telling the story of the show and cast
- 33 episodes with the original groundbreaking, irreverent, hilarious cast. Plus rare footage of the cast, including screen tests and interviews
- All-time classic sketches including “Land Shark,” “Word Association,” “The Killer Bees,” “Super Bass-o-Matic,” “Weekend Update,” and so many more
- Iconic characters including Coneheads, Samurai, Emily Litella, Chevy Chase as President Ford, Shower Mike, The Blues Brothers, Baba Wawa, and more! You'll also recieve special episodes including Chevy Chase's return to SNL with music icon Billy Joel, plus the historic 100th episode!
- Guest Hosts include George Carlin, Richard Pryor, Steve Martin, Candice Bergen, Paul Simon, and more
Why does the sketch use googly eyes?
The eyes turn Kenward’s grandmother’s real-life cactus decoration into a character’s elaborate attempt to make plants feel legible and less threatening. The sketch’s memorable explanation, as transcribed in the podcast episode, is: “Normally, plants don’t have eyes, so it’s hard for me to trust them. Hence, googly eyes.” These are lines attributed to Walken’s character in a third-party podcast transcript, not an official script transcript.
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Rank #4
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