Comedian Sarah Silverman told Bernie Sanders supporters who refuse to back Hillary Clinton that they are "being ridiculous" during her speech at the Democratic National Convention July 25. (The Washington Post)

After a day full of tensions between Bernie Sanders supporters and the Democratic Party, the first few hours of the party's convention on Monday featured plenty of distractions, and things seemed to be moving forward.

Then Sarah Silverman showed up.

The comedian was a Sanders supporter in the primaries, and she came to the stage with Clinton supporter and fellow "Saturday Night Live" alum, Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.). It was a good idea in theory: two comedians trying to bring some levity to the situation and defuse it with humor.

But feelings were still raw. Silverman argued for unity and gave a generally well-received speech, but Sanders supporters weren't happy, and they began making their voices heard.

Silverman tried to make jokes. She noted that Clinton, who was most recently secretary of state, "was a secretary, and now she's going to be president." The crowd got louder.

Silverman added, "I will vote for Hillary with gusto." She concluded her speech by saying, "As I continue to be inspired and moved to action by the ideals set for by Bernie, who will never stop fighting for us, I am proud to be a part of Bernie's movement, and a vital part of that movement is making absolutely sure that Hillary Clinton is the next president of the United States."

The crowd got louder. By that point, though, Franken and Silverman had also run out of material and were being asked to stretch their segment due to a problem with musical guest Paul Simon's organ.

It got a little awkward as they stalled and people chanted. And then Silverman said this: "To the Bernie-or-bust people, let me just tell you: You’re being ridiculous."

Franken gamely tried to argue Silverman had just done a good thing.

"This is a comedian," he said, gesturing to the "Hillary, Hillary" chants. "This is the power of comedy."

Silverman then alluded either to the awkwardness of them still standing there or to the fact that the crowd was still arguing.

"Thank God they can fix this in post[-production]," she said, referring to the editing process in movies and TV shows.

Needless to say, "you're being ridiculous" is not the message the party would have scripted for Silverman or anybody else onstage Monday night. Given it was delivered by Silverman and not a party official, though, perhaps it will blow over.

It could even be remembered as a key moment — in a good way. The Clinton supporters in the crowd surely appreciated the moment, and they cheered loudly, as Franken noted. But it also stands to reason that it could inflame Sanders backers going forward — which was the opposite of the point in sending Silverman out there, after all.

At a time when things appeared to be moving past the drama of the day, it might not have been the best time to put an ad-libbing comedian on the stage to make an appeal for unity. Or maybe it was genius. We'll see how it plays going forward.

Here is Silverman's full speech: