Shane Gillis closed out his third “Saturday Night Live” hosting gig on Oct. 10 with an apology. It was for a curse word, though, and plenty of viewers were waiting on a different one.
Midway through a Dr. Seuss-themed “Green Eggs and Ham” sketch, Gillis let an uncensored F-bomb slip on live TV. He caught himself, gave the Studio 8H crowd a sheepish wave and got back into character. During the goodnights with musical guest Rosalía, he tossed off a quick “sorry about earlier.” NBC later cut the word from the clip it posted online.
The bigger problem came earlier in the night. In a monologue about trying to get back in shape as a self-described fat guy at a New York gym, Gillis said he’d been away so long he “didn’t know women just dress like whores now.” The studio audience groaned. He kept going.
Online, the reaction was harsher. Viewers on X called the bit misogynistic, and a few noted it took them a second to realize his apology covered the swear, not the joke. Dan Levy posted an Instagram video Sunday saying he was “speechless” the line made it onto live national television. He said short shorts don’t make women whores, added that he’s seen far more men’s nipples at the gym than women showing skin, and urged men to start defending women.
Gillis’ history with the show adds weight to every booking. “SNL” hired him in 2019 and dropped him days later, before he appeared in a single episode, after old podcast clips with racist slurs resurfaced. His fans have treated each return as proof that firing was an overreaction.
As of Monday, neither Gillis nor NBC had publicly addressed the gym joke.
