Niall Horan & Scarlett Johansson Appear As Legendary ’70s Hot Tub Ghosts In ‘SNL’ Sketch

Niall Horan was the musical guest on ‘SNL’ Dec. 14, but just popped up as a strip club owner in this hilarious ’70s themed skit with host Scarlett Johansson!

Niall Horan, 26, gave us the surprise of the night when he popped up in this SNL skit! A couple enjoying a romantic holiday getaway at the Radisson Select hotel were unwinding with a moment in the hot tub when they were joined by two party crashing ghosts played by none other than host Scarlett Johansson and Cecily Strong! “Are ya’ll spirits?” the male asked, rather calmly. “Like ghosts? Yeah,” Scarlett answered, as Cecily offered up that they were “just two dead strippers who get to haunt the hot tub every Christmas.” The ladies jumped into quite the musical tune when the woman asked the pair how they passed, which began with “It was Christmas at the strip club, back in 1973.” The ladies then continued detailing the rest of the adventurous evening, as Niall rounded out the trio of jokes as the seedy strip club owner.

Named “Jim,” Niall literally transported us to the ’70’s with his Elvis Presley-worthy sideburns, shaggy cut and tan blazer — but most importantly, he had some important info about what exactly happened with the group. After an evening of drinking — once again, back in 1973 — the group apparently decided that a staring contest in a hot tub was a good idea. “But we swallowed too much water, and now this hot tub is our forever home,” the three sang in unison. What a life sentence! Hilariously, Niall’s ghost still apparently smokes cigarettes, adding to the whole seedy strip club vibe. “Friendship is what Christmas is all about,” Niall’s ghost explained, as Scarlett reminded the group they were all going “back to hell” after the holidays. Just like that, the group disappeared into thin air!

The former One Direction member made his solo musical debut on the episode to support his upcoming album, which is a follow up to 2017’s Flicker. Niall isn’t a stranger to the SNL stage, though, as he’s performed in the past with 1D members Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson and Liam Payne. Though Harry — who recently pulled double duty as host and musical guest — popped up in skits during the 2012 and 2014 performances, tonight marked Niall’s first appearance outside of a musical performance! Earlier in the evening, he had us moving and grooving to “Nice To Meet Ya” and “Put A Little Love On Me.” Though he hasn’t confirmed who either song is about, the Brit was dating to Hailee Steinfeld until last December.

Niall recently made headlines after revealing his flirty run-in with Lizzo, 21, at a London radio station — and her pick-up line was one for the books! “We’re passing in the corridor, I was like, ‘Ah! Lovely to meet you!’ Gave her a big hug,” Niall explained to Jimmy Fallon. “‘You’re voice is incredible. Your songs are amazing. You’re absolutely smashing it.’” How sweet! “And literally, without missing a beat, she just went, ‘You can smash this!’” Talk about forward! Speaking of Lizzo, she’ll be appearing as SNL‘s musical guest next week alongside host Eddie Murphy!