Comedian Shane Gillis made his first public appearance Wednesday night since being hired and then fired from the cast ofSaturday Night Live within a week after his past use of racist slurs drew controversy.
In his 11-minute set at the Stand comedy club in New York, Gillis wearing a hoodie from Matt and Shanes Secret Podcast, his show that drew ire for its racist and homophobic jokes quickly addressed the controversy. Everybodys been like, You cant say shit and not expect consequences. Im fine with the consequences. Im not arguing. Fuck it. But I do want everyone to know that Ive been reading every one of my death threats in an Asian accent.
Gillis also addressed the backlash he had received online Twitter has been fucking nuts and highlighted the difference between his white trash family and upbringing in Philadelphia and the woke friends hes made since moving to New York. (It was reported inVulture that Gillis was banned from several comedy clubs in the Philly scene for bigoted remarks in his comedy sets.)
Chance the Rapper to Return as 'SNL' Host and Musical GuestWatch Camila Cabello Channel Marie Antoinette With 'Cry For Me' in 'SNL' Debut40 Greatest Animated Movies EverCan DNA Tests Help You Find the Best Weed?
[My uncles] have the internet, so Ill get online and the first status will be someone from back home like, Fucking Colin Kaepernick better stand up. Like this status if you love the troops and God. Share it if youre not gay. Next status is one of my new woke friends like, Im not racist,' said Gillis. Its funny to hear so many people these days be like, Im not racist. Are you sure? Being racist isnt a yes or no thing. Its not like you have it or you dont have it. Being racist is like being hungry. Youre not right now but a cheeseburger could cut you off in traffic and you could get hungry real quick. You didnt even know you were hungry for that type of cheeseburger. The cheeseburgers not Asian in that joke.
According to Variety, the audience at the Stand responded positively to Gillis, clapping loudly when he appeared and shouting his name several times throughout the set.
Gillis was announced last Thursday as a newSNLcast hire, along with Chloe Fineman andSNLwriter Bowen Yang. His remarks against Asian people, the LGBTQ community and other marginalized groups, primarily made on his podcast co-hosted with Matt McCusker, quickly resurfaced and were picked apart on social media.SNL announced that they had fired Gillis the following Monday, with a spokesperson saying on behalf of Lorne Michaels, We were not aware of [Gillis] 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.
Gillis responded to the decision with his own statement, writing, It feels ridiculous for comedians to be making serious public statements but here we are. Im a comedian who was funny enough to get SNL. That cant be taken away. Of course I wanted an opportunity to prove myself at SNL, but I understand it would be too much of a distraction. I respect the decision they made. Im honestly grateful for the opportunity. I was always a mad tv guy anyway.
Later, it was reported inVariety that the show was somewhat aware of Gillis history although their vetting process was severely lacking, according to sources and intentionally hired him to appeal to conservative viewers. Representatives fromSNL have not responded to those claims.