Colin Jost has been credited as a writer on more than 300 SNL episodes and as an actor on more than 200, but despite that incredibly long tenure, he hasn’t actually appeared in many traditional sketches. Typically, he shows up for Weekend Update, and that’s the extent of his work in front of the camera. Not this week. The former head writer made a surprise cameo in a real sketch, and I bet you can guess what it was about: a ferry boat.
Jost famously purchased a decommissioned Staten Island ferry boat alongside former cast member Pete Davidson. Both men have close connections to the borough, and after Jost married A-lister Scarlett Johansson, one of their wedding announcements featured a ferry boat that said “Jost Married” on the side. They named their purchase Titanic 2.
Unfortunately, the scheme has not gone according to plan, as three years later, it’s still a work in progress and a frequent source of snarky news articles. It’s also referenced on a semi-regular basis on SNL, sometimes by Jost himself and sometimes by other cast members. Even Johansson has roasted it during other media appearances.
This reference may go down as the most prominent ever, however, as it happened so unexpectedly. Host Quinta Brunson and cast members Mikey Day and Chloe Fineman were leads in a sketch playing drivers involved in a confrontation. They parked next to each other on a ferry boat and were not pleased, but because their windows were rolled up, they had to basically play charades to insult each other.
It’s pretty funny but also, in retrospect, obviously provides the perfect setting for Jost to dunk on himself. You can watch the full sketch below in which Jost shows up and tries to convince them to buy his ferry boat, even claiming he’s Pete Davidson at one point…
Before we get into the Jost part, let’s talk about the larger sketch real quick. Most of the time it’s the political sketches or the celebrity impressions that go mega-viral, but to me, this is the heart of Saturday Night Live and really sketch comedy in general. You throw some funny people into a random life situation and just let them push it as far as possible. I had a smile on my face throughout this entire sketch, and it seems like everyone involved in it was having a great time, as they acted out really random and inappropriate things.
The bigger story here, though, is, of course, the ferry boat part of it. It’s been getting some traction on social media, and it’s easy to see why. Jost is a great comedy writer and a skilled Weekend Update host. He’s also proven time and time again that he’s willing to laugh at himself and be the butt of jokes in order to get laughs. That’s a hallmark of so many great SNL comedians who have been willing to mine their personal lives and/ or put themselves in embarrassing situations in order to amuse the audience.
With Jost, those personal life references have overwhelmingly been about the ferry boat or his marriage to Scarlett Johansson. Every single time, he’s executed them with a good-natured smile on his face, and given she’s hosting the season finale (which some fans are convinced could be Jost's last episode), there’s a good chance he’ll go there a few more times this year too. I can’t wait.
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