The season finale of “Saturday Night Live” concluded with a memorable “Weekend Update” segment, where hosts Colin Jost and Michael Che participated in their customary joke swap.
During this segment, each host read jokes prepared by the other, leading to some uneasy moments. But this time, Mr. Jost realized he had to deliver a joke about his wife, actress Scarlett Johansson. Upon seeing the gag, he exclaimed, “Oh God,” highlighting his discomfort.
The quip involved a reference to the newly released voice assistant feature by ChatGPT, inspired by Ms. Johansson’s AI character in the 2013 film “Her.” In the movie, which stars Joaquin Phoenix as a man who falls in love with his AI device, Ms. Johansson provides the voice for the AI character, Samantha.
Mr. Jost’s joke read: “ChatGPT has released a new voice assistant feature inspired by Scarlett Johansson’s AI character in ‘Her,’ which I’ve never bothered to watch because without that body, what’s the point of listening,” causing visible embarrassment for the comedian.
It’s not the first time Mr. Jost has found himself in an uncomfortable position regarding jokes about his wife. During the final “SNL” show of 2023, he was similarly tasked with reading a wisecrack involving her.
Mr. Jost read: “New York State now allows movie theaters to sell alcohol. Which is how I’m finally able to enjoy my wife’s little art movies.” It was accompanied by a picture of Ms. Johansson in the Marvel film “Black Widow.”
Attempting to recover from the joke, Mr. Jost added: “I’m kidding, honey. I love all of your movies. And if you ask me, you’re an even better ‘Black Widow’ than Coretta Scott King,” a statement that clearly caused him discomfort.
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