For several years now, the year’s final episode of “Saturday Night Live” has included a “Weekend Update” segment in which co-hosts Colin Jost and Michael Che write jokes for the other to read for the first time on air. For Jost, this usually meant Che forcing him to make a litany of jokes about race and racism that are horribly tone-deaf and over-the-top – and, in context, often quite funny.
This year, however, Che found a new way to torture Jost: making him say scandalous things about his wife, Scarlett Johansson, while a camera captured Johansson’s live reactions in the hallway outside the studio. The actor appeared during the episode’s cold open to welcome host Martin Short to the Five Timers Club, and Che apparently couldn’t resist the chance to have some fun at the couple’s expense.
The piece started with Jost reading that he was going to “read all the jokes in ‘Black Voice’ this year so I don’t get in trouble,” which led to Jost reading a joke about Kamala Harris in which he said she was still thinking about the idea always supporting. of reparations for slavery.
“Well, damn girl, me too,” said Jost, barely able to get the words out through his exasperated laugh. “Because white people deserve our money back for all those slaves who ran away.”
That was just a taste of what Jost had to say about his wife. Just the sight of her face in an image over Jost’s shoulder was enough to make some people in the audience scream in anticipation of what was to come.
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“I want to dedicate this next joke to my sweetheart, Scarlett Johansson,” Jost said, before a camera panned to a nervous Johansson, drink in hand as she watched Jost from a monitor above her.
“No! No!” Jost said, realizing what was happening. “Oh my god, she is so genuinely concerned!”
That’s when he first started reading the jokes Che had written for him.
“You all know Scarlett just celebrated her 40th birthday, which means I’m about to get out of there!” Jost said, bursting into laughter again before he could even finish the line. After regaining his composure – and Che reminding him that there was more to it – Jost continued. “Shez! No, no. “I’m just playing,” he said. “We just had a kid together, and y’all haven’t seen any pictures of him yet because he’s black as hell!” – at which point a photoshopped image of Jost and Johansson holding a black baby appeared over Jost’s shoulder.
Che has certainly had his fair share of comedic humiliation, forced to make jokes about “Moana 2” and Jeffrey Epstein, Jay-Z, and his promise to Diddy that “I’ll help you get off.” But then the spotlight turned back to Jost, who ended the segment with a joke about his wife being so R-rated that it actually shocked Johansson. Warning: this is not for the faint of heart!
“Costco took their roast beef sandwich off the menu, but I’m not tripping,” Jost said. “I’ve been eating roast beef every night since my wife had the kid!” After the audience, Jost and Che all stopped laughing, Jost read the last lines. “No, no, I’m just playing baby. You know I’m not going to town! Shiz! That’s homosexual!”
Martin Short presented the episode with Hozier as musical guest. You can watch the full clip below: