Taylor Swift Makes a Cameo Appearance on SNL to Support Dakota Johnson

Taylor Swift made a surprise appearance on Saturday Night Live on October 3 to support her longtime friend Dakota Johnson, who was hosting the show for the third time. Swift joined Johnson during her opening monologue, where the actress joked about her history of dating musicians.

Johnson began by talking about having supportive friends who do not judge her for the musicians she has dated. She then introduced Swift as her “literal therapist,” giving the singer a cue to walk in and as soon as she hit the stage, Swift corrected her by saying “I’m not your therapist, actually. You just show up once a week at my house with an empty bottle of wine and ask if I want some,” she said. “You flop on my couch and overshare and every so often I say ‘Damn, that’s crazy.” She then joked that she sends Johnson home with a security escort.

Photo: Getty Images

Swift’s cameo appearance came less than a week after she debuted the music video for “Patient Zero,” which stars Johnson alongside Colin Farrell, with Cara Delevingne and Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford also making appearances. The video premiered at the MTV Video Music Awards on September 27, and Swift later made an X post following the video’s debut.

“I want to thank Dakota and Colin for trusting me with their time, taste, and talent (Giggling with your friend because you’re twinning for an entire shoot was a new and truly delightful experience), and Colin’s turn as a villain is even more impressive when you get to be around him. He’s an absolute light and as kind as they come. Cara, thank you for agreeing to play the lusty other woman. That’s what friends are for?”

Photo: SNL

Johnson also spoke about her friendship with the singer in a September 24 interview, saying that she and Swift have been friends for a long time and are very close. She added that they decided to work together on the video and that the experience was great.

The SNL appearance marked Swift’s first time back on the show since October 2023, when she made a surprise cameo to introduce Ice Spice as the musical guest. Swift has also hosted the show once, in 2009, and has returned several times as a musical guest.

Photo: Instagram/@Taylor Swift

This period has been a busy stretch for Swift. On September 25, she released The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore, an expanded edition of her 2025 album with four additional tracks. She also appeared at the MTV VMAs the previous week, where she received the inaugural Artist Director Honors and premiered the “Patient Zero” video.