Shane Gillis is set to make a controversial comeback as the host of the upcoming episode of “Saturday Night Live” on Feb. 24. This announcement comes after Gillis was initially cast and swiftly fired from the late-night sketch show in 2019. Joining him as the musical guest will be the talented 21 Savage.
A Troubled Past
Gillis’ return to “SNL” is not without controversy. Just hours after his 2019 casting was announced, videos resurfaced on social media featuring him making racist and homophobic jokes. The backlash was immediate, leading to his removal from the show.
A Learning Experience
In response to the controversy, a spokesperson for “SNL” stated, “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.”
Moving Forward
“SNL” aims to move past the controversy and give Gillis another chance to showcase his talent. As we all know, people can learn and grow from their mistakes. It will be interesting to see how Gillis redeems himself and delivers a memorable performance on the show.