The Adventures of Young Ben Carson

Elizabeth Banks

Richie… Beck Bennett

Sasheer Zamata

Ben… Jay Pharoah

Mom… Leslie Jones

Black Jesus… Kenan Thompson

[Starts with Ben Carson’s Book and the newspaper articles]

Male voice: The media went after him pretty hard even though he’s one of the most accomplished doctors in all the land. A true American success story. But I knew him before all that. Back when he was just another brother from the streets of Detroit. Back when he was young Ben Carson.

[Screen showing “The Adventures of Young Ben Carson”.]

Adapted from the stories of Dr. Ben Carson.

[Cut to Detroit in 1968. Elizabeth, Richie and Sasheer are talking in the street.]

Elizabeth: And he thought Richie would back down.

Richie: Yeah. So I told him, “Don’t listen to me. [showing his handgun] Listen to my two friends. Smith and Wessen.

Elizabeth: Ha-ha-ha-ha.

Sasheer: You think that’s bad. You ought to meet my boyfriend Ben.

[Ben walks in]

Ben: Did somebody say my name?

Richie: Ben?

Ben: Yeah, what are you doing in this neighborhood? Like a Muslin in the White House, you don’t belong.

[Cut to Elizabeth and Richie]

Elizabeth: Wait, what?

Richie: [fake laughing] You’re out there Ben, you’re crazy, man!

[Cut to Sasheer and Ben. Sasheer looks worried.]

Ben: Excuse me? What did you say about me?

Sasheer: Ben, don’t. Your temper. He’s mad now!

[Cut to Elizabeth and Richie]

Elizabeth: Really? He’s angry?

[Cut to Sasheer and Ben.]

Really?

Ben: [speaks calmly] I am hot with rage. And right now, I’m about to go off. I feel like I might have to cut you.

[Ben takes a knife out]

[Sasheer screams and runs away]

[Cut to Ben, Elizabeth and Richie]

Here comes with the quickness.

[Ben is moving slowly towards Richie]

Elizabeth: Quick! Stick out your belt.

[Ben hits Richie’s belt buckle with his knife and drops it]

Ben: Ah, man! Blocked by a belt buckle. This happens all the time.

[Mom walks in]

Mom: Ben, what are you dong?

Ben: Oh, my ma. We were just playing.

Mom: Get off these streets and back in the library. You’re going to ruin your future and end up in jail.

Ben: I can’t go to prison, my ma. People go to prison straight and come out gay. I’m not ready to be gay.

Mom: That don’t make no sense, Ben. And open your damn eyes.

Ben: Oh, my eyes are open, my ma. Wide and full of rage. Now it’s time to open your’s.

[Ben fetches a hammer]

Mom: Oh, damn! He got a hammer!

Elizabeth: Quick, put this belt on your head.

[Elizabeth puts a belt on Mom’s forehead.]

[Ben is about to hit Mom]

Male speaker: Halt!

[Ben looks around to see who it is]

Ben: Who is that?

[Cut to Black Jesus walking in. He is walking on smoke and wearing a white robe.]

Black Jesus: It’s me, black Jesus.

[Cut to Ben]

Ben: Amazing.

[Cut to Ben and Black Jesus]

Black Jesus: Open your eyes, my son. Why are you out here on the streets acting like a fool? You know I created humans like you to be the most evolved species.

Ben: But evolution isn’t real or we’d have the fossils to prove it. And those fossils don’t exist.

Black Jesus: Not so sure about that. But you still need to act right. You have a higher purpose, Ben. Someday, you’ll save hundreds of lives. Inspire thousands of kids, and make millions of people say, “How did he get up there?”

Ben: But black Jesus, I don’t have any friends. Will you be my friend?

Black Jesus: I guess.

Ben: Fantastic. Let’s go get our portraits painted together.

Black Jesus: Well sure, as long as you put it up in your house.

Ben: Alright.

[Cut to a picture of Jesus and Ben Carson doing high-five. Their bodies are drawn like in kid’s school.]

Black Jesus: And we were friends. Best friends. We went to Yale together. We separated twins together. We went to Egypt and saw the ancient grain silo. [Picture has Ben and Mom, and there are pyramids behind them.] That’s a lot of grain.

[Cut to Ben and Black Jesus]

Ben: Everything black Jesus said came true. I became respected surgeon and a multi-millionaire all in America that today is very like Nazi Germany.

[Black Jesus clears his throat]

Black Jesus: Oh, Ben. You crazy. Haha.

Ben: [looking disappointed] What did you say about me?

[Ben pulls his knife out]

Black Jesus: You gonna cut Jesus?

[Cut to The Adventures of Young Ben Carson outro]

[The End]

Author: Don Roy King

Don Roy King has directed fourteen seasons of Saturday Night Live. That work has earned him ten Emmys and fourteen nominations. Additionally, he has been nominated for fifteen DGA Awards and won in 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020.

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