Please Don't Destroy Refuses To Let 'SNL' Break up the Group

A big aspect of lockdown was finding entertainment to both distract from and slow the oncoming approach of abject dread. The world was ending (and, some may argue, it did), and all we could do was sit back and hope that things got better. Anyone who provided me with comfort or laughter during that time earned a special place in my heart. That includes the members of Please Don’t Destroy.

The first video of theirs I probably watched was about vaccines. Red-headed non-Nepo member of the group, Ben Marshall, gets a COVID vaccine, but not one anyone has heard of. He has terrible side effects, few details about where it came from, but is at least happy it wasn’t the Johnson & Johnson shot. It’s hilarious and holds up pretty darn well (while also making me feel like I’m back in my small, childless apartment on 164th street).

Please Don’t Destroy would soon join the ranks at SNL. It helps that two out of the three members (John Higgins and Martin Herlihy) have fathers who run in SNL circles. Or, in Higgins’ case, is actively still a writer and producer on the show. Still, they also got there because their work was hilarious and, like fellow cast member James Austin Johnson, went crazy viral during lockdown.

The success of the group’s time on the show is up for debate. While they produced plenty of funny stuff, the sketches, often involving the week’s host, were not only hit or miss but also infrequently present. The guys would just disappear for weeks at a time. Then, as turnover began for this upcoming season of Saturday Night Live, the gang was no more, kind of.

Ben Marshall, who has no connected parents, was bumped up to being a full-time cast member. Martin Herlihy will be staying on as a staff writer. John Higgins has left. He shared that he looks to move on to other acting projects, and I wish him the best. I say this in the nicest way possible, but Hollywood always needs grumpy and antagonistic co-workers for Act One of rom coms, and he’ll fit right in.

Higgins’s exit left many wondering about the future of the group. The three friends put those fears to rest this weekend at a show in Portland. They took the stage together, instantly making light of the situation, with Higgins and Marshall both jokingly asking about the news of the week. Then, Higgins tells the crowd that it’s “PDD forever, baby.”

@optimisthicc2 Replying to @meganlizsmith “It’s PDD forever baby!” #pleasedontdestroy #snl #johnhiggins #portland ♬ What Was I Made For? [From The Motion Picture "Barbie"] - Billie Eilish

I’m glad the group is staying together. Splitting up in any way can be death to a comedy troupe. And, who knows, maybe they won’t last long once they get into their new respective schedules. For now, they can continue to make their fans and each other laugh. Given that they helped me at such an insane time, I hope for nothing but the best for them.