The celebrity guest hosts of Saturday Night Live are usually actors, musicians, athletes, and former stars of the sketch comedy show. So, it came as quite a surprise when CEO of Tesla and SpaceX Elon Musk was announced as the host of an upcoming SNL. It also evidently came as a disappointment to some of the show's cast members.
The controversial billionaire will host the sketch comedy show on May 8 with Miley Cyrus joining as the musical guest. In response to the announcement, which was made on Apr. 24, some of the show's stars have either directly or subtly commented on the news on social media. And these cast members aren't the only ones upset about the decision. Viewers of the show have also spoken out against the choice.
Read on to see which SNL stars commented—or hinted—about Musk's hosting gig and what they had to say. And for more on controversial Saturday Night Live hosts, check out Kenan Thompson Says This SNL Guest Made the Cast "Extremely Uncomfortable."
One cast member called out a tweet from Musk.
As reported by The Wrap and captured in screenshots posted on social media, SNL cast member Bowen Yang re-posted a tweet from Musk on his Instagram Story and added his own response. The tweet from Musk reads, "Let's find out just how live Saturday Night Live really is" with a devil emoji. Yang wrote on his post, "What the f*** does this even mean?" Before that post, Yang shared a frowning face emoji, which may likely refer to the news.
For more on the comedy show, read Tina Fey Says This Celebrity Guest Was a "Disaster" On SNL.
Another star shared his criticism through a joke.
Cast member Andrew Dismukes also commented on the news on his Instagram Story. The 25-year-old comedian shared a photo of former cast member Cheri Oteri and wrote, "ONLY CEO I WANT TO DO A SKETCH WITH IS Cher-E Oteri," as reported by CNBC.
For a former star's pick for the worst guest he worked with, check out This Was the Worst Behaved SNL Guest, According to Bill Hader.
Two members of the staff indirectly protested the choice.
Longtime cast member Aidy Bryant shared a tweet from Senator Bernie Sanders in her Instagram Story. The tweet from Mar. 25 reads, "The 50 wealthiest people in America today own more wealth than the bottom half of our people. Let me repeat that, because it is almost too absurd to believe: the 50 wealthiest people in this country own more wealth than some 165 MILLION Americans. That is a moral obscenity."
Musk is currently the third richest person in the world. According to CNBC, the post was also shared by SNL writer Sudi Green.
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Musk's recent scandals involve COVID-19, unions, and a mission to Mars.
In addition to being criticized for the immense amount of wealth he's accumulated, Musk has also been involved in some other recent scandals that contribute to the backlash against him hosting. In the past year, Musk has shared false information about COVID-19 and questioned the safety of the vaccine. More recently, he tweeted his support for vaccination against the disease.
Last month, the National Labor Relations Board ruled that Musk should remove a 2018 tweet that was deemed anti-union, reports CNBC. His company, Tesla, was also ordered to reinstate a union advocate employee who was fired.
On top of that, in April, Musk casually said that his company SpaceX's missions to Mars will likely result in deaths. "I mean, honestly, a bunch of people probably will die in the beginning," he said with a laugh in a recent interview on the XPRIZE YouTube account. "It's tough sledding over there, you know? … We don't want to make anyone go, so it's volunteers only."
Read about another host who didn't go over well with cast members in Maya Rudolph Says This SNL Host Made the Cast Want to Leave.
Lia Beck Lia Beck is a writer living in Richmond, Virginia. In addition to Best Life, she has written for Refinery29, Bustle, Hello Giggles, InStyle, and more.Read moreFiled UnderCelebrities • Entertainment • NewsRead This NextKamala Harris' Stepson Is Calling Out "SNL"
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