Colin Jost Says He's Undecided About His Future on SNL as He Breaks Down the 'Joy of the Job'
Colin Jost isn't sure what his future at Saturday Night Live looks like, but he does miss seeing his colleagues in person.
During a recent appearance on SiriusXM's The Howard Stern Show to promote his new book, A Very Punchable Face, the comedian reflected on the show, explaining how life under lockdown amid the coronavirus pandemic has changed his perspective.
Asked whether the upcoming season would be his last, Jost, 38, said he had been "talking to Che about it, in general," referring to his "Weekend Update" co-anchor and co-head writer Michael Che.
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"I'm not sure," he said. "I think the COVID stuff has really affected how I feel about it. Because being away from people that make you laugh at work in that way, for this long, really makes you appreciative of not only the job, but of the routine of being at work and having to run into people who are funny, like, in the hallways, and how much of the joy of the job is just proximity."
"You know, you have to be with people you love," he continued. "And without that routine, you could be in L.A. and you could go months without seeing friends. You're much more isolated, whereas at our job, you have nowhere to hide. You have to see your friends. It's great."
Jost said that being a part of the long-running sketch NBC comedy series comes with a certain "anxiety."
"You have an anxiety to do other things and kind of prove your worth in another way," he said. "A thing that [creator] Lorne [Michaels] says is people who you love, who used to be cast members on SNL, the funniest they ever were was on SNL. Even if they did great, brilliant work after, that there was something about the first time you discovered them and saw them on SNL."
"Like, the first times you see Will Ferrell — he's made such funny movies, but there's also just that thing about the first glimpse you got of Will Ferrell yelling at a dinner table, or something," he continued. "It's like this pure thing. The best versions of that are probably people kind of f---ing around and finding something that's really funny to them, or makes their friends laugh and there's something loose and very pure about it, because it's not structured in a movie or whatever. It's just like, trying to make people laugh for four minutes."
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Jost, who is engaged to actress Scarlett Johansson, joined SNL as a writer in 2005 shortly after graduating from college. From 2009-2012, he served as the writing supervisor before becoming co-head writer from 2012 to 2015.
In 2014, he replaced Seth Meyers as a co-anchor on "Weekend Update" alongside Che. The following year, he exited his role as co-head writer to focus solely on "Weekend Update," but in December 2017 he was promoted again to co-head writer, as was Che, 37.