Shane Gillis, the comedian who was fired from Saturday Night Live after making racist and homophobic jokes on a podcast, is set to host the show on February 24th, with musical guest 21 Savage.
The announcement, which was made during the SNL episode hosted by Ayo Edibiri, has sparked controversy and backlash, as many people have questioned the decision of the show.
Gillis was hired as a new cast member of SNL in September 2019, along with Bowen Yang and Chloe Fineman. However, shortly after the news broke, videos surfaced of the comedian using racial slurs against Asian people and mocking their accents on a podcast called Matt and Shane’s Secret Podcast, which he co-hosted with Matt McCusker. Gillis also made derogatory remarks about women, gay people, and Muslims on the podcast.
The videos caused an uproar on social media, and many people, including celebrities, fellow comedians, and politicians, condemned him for his offensive and hateful comments. Some of them also demanded that SNL fire Gillis and apologize for hiring him in the first place.
SNL responded to the controversy by firing him four days after he was hired, and issuing a statement that said:
“After talking with Shane Gillis, we have decided that he will not be joining SNL. We want SNL to have a variety of voices and points of view within the show, and we hired Shane on the strength of his talent as a comedian and his impressive audition for SNL.
We were not aware of his prior remarks that have surfaced over the past few days. The language he used is offensive, hurtful and unacceptable. We are sorry that we did not see these clips earlier, and that our vetting process was not up to our standard.”
Gillis also issued a statement on Twitter, in which he said:
“I’m a comedian who was funny enough to get SNL. That can’t be taken away. Of course I wanted an opportunity to prove myself at SNL, but I understand it would be too much of a distraction. I respect the decision they made. I’m honestly grateful for the opportunity. I was always a mad tv guy anyway.”
Since then, Gillis has continued to perform stand-up comedy and host his podcast, where he has made more jokes about his SNL firing and the backlash he received. He has also appeared on other podcasts and shows, such as The Joe Rogan Experience, where he defended his comedy style and criticized cancel culture.
However, many people have not forgiven him for his racist and homophobic jokes, and have threatened to boycott the show and its sponsors.
As of the time of writing, SNL has not commented on the controversy and has not indicated any plans to change its lineup.
The episode featuring Gillis as a host and 21 Savage as a musical guest will air on Feb. 24th, at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBC. It will be the 14th episode of the 49th season of SNL, and the first time that Shane Gillis will appear on the show since his firing.
