Colonel William A. Phillips

Colin Kelly Jost (/ˈst/; born June 29, 1982)[1][2] is an American comedian, writer, and actor. Jost has been a staff writer for the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live since 2005, and co-anchor of Weekend Update since 2014. He also served as one of the show's co-head writers from 2012 to 2015 and later came back as one of the show's head writers in 2017 until 2022 alongside Michael Che.[3][4][5][6][7]

Early life

Colin Jost was born and raised in New York City in the Grymes Hill[8] neighborhood of Staten Island, the elder of two sons.[9][10][11] His mother, Kerry J. Kelly, was the chief medical officer for the New York City Fire Department,[12] and his father, Daniel A. Jost, is a former teacher at Staten Island Technical High School.[13][14] He has one younger brother, Casey Jost, a writer and a producer of Impractical Jokers; he also had a role in Staten Island Summer.[15][16]

Raised Roman Catholic, he attended Regis High School in Manhattan, where he was the editor of the school newspaper The Owl.[15] He attended Harvard University,[9] majoring in history and literature, with a focus on Russian literature and British literature, and wrote his senior thesis on Vladimir Nabokov. Jost graduated cum laude from Harvard in 2004.

While at Harvard, he was president of the Harvard Lampoon.[10][17] He also won $5,250 on a college edition of Weakest Link, but said he did not think he deserved to win.[18]

Career

After graduation, Jost worked as a reporter and copy editor for the Staten Island Advance. He was then hired as a writer for a short-lived Nickelodeon animated show, Kappa Mikey. After he left that job, he sent in a writing packet to NBC's Saturday Night Live, which gave him a writing position in 2005.[9]

From 2009 to 2012, Jost was SNL's writing supervisor. He was co-head writer from 2012 to 2015, and regained that status from 2017 to 2022.[19][7] He often collaborated with fellow SNL co-head writer Rob Klein.[20] During the summer hiatus following the 2012–2013 season, executive producer Lorne Michaels asked Jost if he could do the Weekend Update feature[9] because co-anchor Seth Meyers would soon be leaving to host Late Night with Seth Meyers. Jost accepted and replaced Meyers on the March 1, 2014, episode.[21] Jost later broke Meyers' record for being the longest anchor in the history of the segment on the October 23, 2021 episode hosted by Jason Sudeikis.[22]

Jost names Norm Macdonald as a primary influence for his Update anchor work. Macdonald's tone was the one Jost grew up with in high school. He also names Tina Fey as an influence.[9] In addition to Weekend Update, Jost made a brief cameo appearance as Ohio Governor John Kasich in a Republican presidential debate sketch.[23] He later portrayed his friend Pete Buttigieg during the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries[24][25] and Roger Goodell during the 2021 NFL season.[26]

Jost has worked in multiple roles related to comedy. He has performed as a stand-up comedian, appearing on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, TBS, and HBO.[27] He was selected as a "New Face" at the Montréal Just for Laughs festival in 2009,[28] and has since appeared at the Chicago Just for Laughs festival in 2011 and 2012 and the Montréal festival again in 2010 and 2012. Jost has published four "Shouts and Murmurs" pieces in The New Yorker magazine and has also contributed to The New York Times Magazine, The Huffington Post, The Staten Island Advance and Radar.[29] He wrote the screenplay of and played a minor role in the 2015 comedy film Staten Island Summer, and he also had a minor role as Paul in the 2016 romcom feature How to Be Single.[30] In January 2016, Jost opened for comedian Liam McEneaney's album recording at The Bell House in Brooklyn.[31] In late 2018, Jost and Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers appeared in an advertising campaign for Izod.[32]

Jost, along with Michael Che, appeared on the March 4, 2019, episode of WWE's Monday Night Raw, where both were announced as special correspondents for WrestleMania 35. In the March 4 episode, they got involved in a storyline with wrestler Braun Strowman, which resulted in both Jost and Che becoming participants in the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania.[33][34] At the event, Jost and Che went under the ring for the majority of the match and then tried to eliminate Strowman while he was trying to do the same to the Hardy Boyz. Jost attempted to calm the situation by using his therapist, but Strowman chokeslammed him and eliminated the two comedians in quick succession, winning the battle royal.[35]

In July 2020, Jost released a memoir titled A Very Punchable Face: A Memoir.[36] The book was well received and appeared on the New York Times Bestseller List.[37]

Personal life

Jost and Scarlett Johansson in 2023

Jost was dormmates with Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg while the two lived in Leverett House at Harvard.[38] In 2015, Jost donated money to Buttigieg's mayoral reelection campaign.[39][40] Subsequently, during Buttigieg's presidential campaign, Jost portrayed Buttigieg in the 45th season of SNL.[38][41]

Jost is married to actress Scarlett Johansson, whom he met during one of her many occasions hosting SNL.[42] They began a relationship in May 2017[43] and in May 2019 the two were engaged.[44] They married in October 2020, at their New York home.[45] Johansson gave birth to their son in August 2021.[46] Jost is also stepfather to Johansson's daughter from a previous marriage.

Jost, along with fellow SNL comedian Pete Davidson, has purchased a decommissioned Staten Island Ferry boat.[47][48][49]

Filmography

Film

Year Film Role Notes
2015 Staten Island Summer Officer Greg Callahan Also writer
2016 How to Be Single Paul
2021 Tom & Jerry Ben
2021 Coming 2 America Calvin Duke
N/A Worst Man Also writer[50]

Television

Year Series Role Notes
2002 Weakest Link Himself Contestant[51]
2005–present Saturday Night Live Himself, Various Also writer
2006 Kappa Mikey Writer
7 episodes
2017 Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday Himself 3 episodes; also writer
2018 75th Golden Globe Awards Writer
2018 70th Primetime Emmy Awards Himself (host) TV special
2019 WWE Raw Himself Special guest (2 episodes)[52][33][34]
2019 WrestleMania 35 Himself Special guest
2020 Impractical Jokers: Dinner Party Himself Episode: "The Childhood Meals Episode"
2021 RuPaul's Drag Race Himself 1 episode
2022 Impractical Jokers Himself 1 episode
2022 That Damn Michael Che Himself Episode: "Black Mediocrity"
2022 The Kardashians Himself Episode: "Life from New York"

Bibliography

Awards and honors

Year Award Nominated work Result
2007 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety (including talk) series Saturday Night Live Won
2008 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Series Saturday Night Live Nominated
2009 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety (including talk) series Saturday Night Live Won
Peabody Award[54] Saturday Night Live Won
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Series Saturday Night Live Nominated
2010 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety (including talk) series Saturday Night Live Won
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series Saturday Night Live Nominated
2011 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety (including talk) series Saturday Night Live Nominated
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Series Saturday Night Live Nominated
2012 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety (including talk) series Saturday Night Live Nominated
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series Saturday Night Live Nominated
2013 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety (including talk) series Saturday Night Live Nominated
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series Saturday Night Live Nominated
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday Nominated
2014 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety (including talk) series[55] Saturday Night Live Nominated
2015 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety (Including Talk) – Series[56] Saturday Night Live Nominated
2016 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety – Sketch Series[57] Saturday Night Live Nominated
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series[58] Saturday Night Live Nominated
2017 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety – Sketch Series[59] Saturday Night Live Won
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series[60] Saturday Night Live Nominated
2018 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety – Sketch Series[61] Saturday Night Live Won
Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety – Sketch Series[61] Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday Nominated
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series[62] Saturday Night Live Nominated
2019 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety – Sketch Series[63] Saturday Night Live Nominated
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series[64] Saturday Night Live Nominated
2020 Writers Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety – Sketch Series[65] Saturday Night Live Nominated

References

  1. ^ Mandel, Peter; Baher, Cynthia (May 1983). "The Classes". Brown Alumni Monthly. Vol. 83, no. 8. p. 58. Retrieved September 13, 2014. Darnel A. Jost and his wife. Dr. Kerry Kelly '77 M.D., of Staten Island, N.Y., report the birth of their first child, Colin Kelly Jost, on June 29.
  2. ^ "Colin Jost". TV Guide. Archived from the original on January 29, 2016.
  3. ^ Johnson, Ben (October 30, 2008). "Cover Story: Jost for Laughs". AWE. Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved August 19, 2010.
  4. ^ Cooper, Gael Fashingbauer (January 23, 2014). "'SNL' head writer to join Cecily Strong as 'Weekend Update' co-anchor". The Today Show. Retrieved January 23, 2014.[permanent dead link]
  5. ^ Abramovitch, Seth. "Colin Jost Steps Down as Head Writer at 'Saturday Night Live'". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on May 20, 2019. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  6. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (December 12, 2017). "'Saturday Night Live': Colin Jost & Michael Che Named Co-Head Writers Of NBC Show". Archived from the original on February 22, 2021. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
  7. ^ a b "Miles Teller/Kendrick Lamar". Saturday Night Live. Season 48. Episode 1. October 1, 2022. Event occurs at Closing credits. NBC.
  8. ^ "SNL's Colin Jost before he was famous: 10 classic Staten Island Advance stories". silive.com. November 19, 2017. Archived from the original on January 19, 2019. Retrieved January 19, 2019.
  9. ^ a b c d e Fretts, Bruce (April 7, 2014). "Surely You Jost!". TV Guide. p. 9.
  10. ^ a b Zaino, Nick A. III (July 25, 2013). "Colin Jost, from Harvard Lampoon to 'SNL'" Archived October 25, 2017, at the Wayback Machine. The Boston Globe.
  11. ^ Fox, Jesse David (January 23, 2014). "Meet Colin Jost, SNL's New 'Weekend Update' Co-Anchor". Vulture.com. Archived from the original on April 12, 2019. Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  12. ^ "FDNY head medical officer retires in 'Thelma and Louise' style". March 16, 2018. Archived from the original on February 7, 2021. Retrieved March 16, 2018.
  13. ^ Friedman, Milly (February 24, 2014). " 'Saturday Night Live' moves young comic Colin Jost into a 'Weekend Update' anchor chair" Archived February 3, 2018, at the Wayback Machine. Daily News (New York).
  14. ^ Bailey, Rob (March 1, 2014). "Staten Island native Colin Jost to make 'Weekend Update' debut on March 1's 'Saturday Night Live'" Archived October 10, 2017, at the Wayback Machine. silive.com.
  15. ^ a b "Colin Jost and Michael Che: 25 Things You Don't Know About Us". October 2016. Archived from the original on October 2, 2016. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
  16. ^ "'Impractical Jokers' Invite 'SNL's Colin Jost to 'Dinner Party' in Sneak Peek (VIDEO)". November 24, 2020. Archived from the original on May 6, 2021. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
  17. ^ Ramisetti, Kirthana (January 23, 2014). "Colin Jost to replace Seth Meyers as 'Weekend Update' cohost on 'Saturday Night Live'" Archived October 10, 2017, at the Wayback Machine
  18. ^ Martin, William C. (November 14, 2002). "Junior Proves Strength on 'Weakest Link' Archived November 29, 2021, at the Wayback Machine. The Harvard Crimson. Accessed May 14, 2021.
  19. ^ Robinson, Joanna (December 13, 2017). "Saturday Night Live Makes Its Most Baffling Move Yet". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on November 9, 2020. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
  20. ^ Gallagher, Brian (March 5, 2010). "Tracy Morgan Set for ID Theft". MovieWeb. Archived from the original on June 26, 2013. Retrieved July 30, 2012.
  21. ^ Goldberg, Lesley (January 23, 2014). "'SNL' Names New 'Weekend Update' Co-Anchor". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 23, 2014.
  22. ^ White, Peter (October 24, 2021). "'SNL': Colin Jost Breaks Seth Meyers' Weekend Update Record". Deadline. Archived from the original on October 15, 2022. Retrieved October 14, 2022.
  23. ^ "Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (cold open)". Saturday Night Live. Season 41. December 19, 2015. Archived from the original on July 5, 2016. Retrieved July 2, 2016.
  24. ^ "Woody Harrelson, Billie Eilish (town hall sketch)". Saturday Night Live. Season 45. September 28, 2019. NBC. Archived from the original on October 17, 2021. Retrieved October 16, 2021.
  25. ^ "John Mulaney, David Byrne (cold open)". Saturday Night Live. Season 45. February 29, 2020. NBC. Archived from the original on October 17, 2021. Retrieved October 16, 2021.
  26. ^ "Rami Malek, Young Thug (cold open)". Saturday Night Live. Season 47. October 16, 2021. NBC. Archived from the original on October 18, 2021. Retrieved October 17, 2021.
  27. ^ Cavin, Cory (January 28, 2011). "Check Out Comedian Colin Jost Tonight!". Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Archived from the original on February 2, 2011. Retrieved July 30, 2012.
  28. ^ Gadino, Dylan P. (July 16, 2010). "Just For Laughs: Feimster, Lawrence, Jost impress at New Faces". LaughSpin. Archived from the original on April 26, 2013.
  29. ^ Jost, Colin (April 4, 2011). "Explaining Your Time Warner Bill". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on April 7, 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
  30. ^ "Watch Colin Jost dump Alison Brie in 'How to be Single' trailer". Archived from the original on November 10, 2016. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
  31. ^ "Liam McEneaney: The New Album Recording, Colin Jost, Dave Hill, Rob Paravonian, and Support Acts TBA". DONYC. January 10, 2016. Retrieved September 17, 2022.
  32. ^ Palmieri, Jean E. (September 5, 2018). "Parody Traditional Fashion Ads in New Izod Commercials". Women's Wear Daily. Archived from the original on September 29, 2018. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  33. ^ a b Powell, Jason (March 4, 2019). "3/4 Powell's WWE Raw TV Review: Triple H's response to Batista attacking Ric Flair, Charlotte Flair wants Vince McMahon to name her the Raw Women's Champion, SNL Weekend Update hosts appear, final hype for WWE Fastlane". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on March 6, 2019. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  34. ^ a b Powell, Jason (March 25, 2019). "3/25 Powell's WWE Raw TV Review: Ronda Rousey, Becky Lynch, and Charlotte Flair face Riott Squad in Beat The Clock Challenge matches, Kurt Angle vs. Samoa Joe, the penultimate edition before WrestleMania 35". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on March 27, 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  35. ^ Benigno, Anthony (April 7, 2019). "Braun Strowman won the sixth annual Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal". WWE. Archived from the original on April 9, 2019. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
  36. ^ Jost, Colin (2020). A Very Punchable Face: A Memoir. Crown. ISBN 978-1101906323.
  37. ^ "A Very Punchable Face". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
  38. ^ a b Merica, Dan (October 26, 2019). "From Harvard to SNL: How Pete Buttigieg and Colin Jost are crossing paths 15 years later". CNN. Archived from the original on October 27, 2019. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  39. ^ "Buttigieg to be a guest on "Late Night with Seth Meyers" Thursday". South Bend Tribune. June 7, 2017. Archived from the original on April 7, 2020. Retrieved September 7, 2019.
  40. ^ Blasko, Erin (October 17, 2015). "Buttigieg fattens war chest in mayoral campaign". South Bend Tribune. Archived from the original on September 21, 2019. Retrieved September 7, 2019.
  41. ^ "'Saturday Night Live' jumps right back into politics in season premiere". Boston.co. September 29, 2019. Archived from the original on October 7, 2019. Retrieved October 7, 2019.
  42. ^ "Scarlett Johansson Reveals the Real Secret Behind Her Happy Marriage to Colin Jost". Harper's BAZAAR. June 12, 2023. Retrieved November 12, 2023.
  43. ^ Sieczkowski, Cavan (December 1, 2017). "Introducing ScarJost: Scarlett Johansson And Colin Jost Go Public". The Huffington Post. Archived from the original on May 17, 2018. Retrieved May 20, 2018.
  44. ^ Mizoguchil, Karen (May 19, 2019). "Scarlett Johansson and SNL's Colin Jost Are Engaged After Two Years of Dating". People. Archived from the original on May 20, 2019. Retrieved May 20, 2019.
  45. ^ Michallon, Clémence (October 29, 2020). "Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost marry in private ceremony". The Independent. Archived from the original on October 31, 2020. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  46. ^ VanHoose, Benjamin; Leonard, Elizabeth (August 18, 2021). "Scarlett Johansson and Husband Colin Jost Welcome First Baby Together". People. Archived from the original on August 18, 2021. Retrieved August 18, 2021.
  47. ^ France, Lisa Respers (July 3, 2023). "Pete Davidson jokes he and Colin Jost are in the 'hole' after buying ferry boat". CNN. Archived from the original on July 13, 2023. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
  48. ^ "Colin Jost says he was 'actually stone-cold sober' when buying ferry with Pete Davidson". USA TODAY. Archived from the original on July 26, 2023. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
  49. ^ Tinoco, Armando (June 7, 2023). "Pete Davidson Hopes Staten Island Ferry He Bought With Colin Jost "Turns Into A Transformer" So He "Can Stop Paying For It"". Deadline.com. Archived from the original on June 14, 2023. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
  50. ^ Kroll, Justin (June 17, 2020). "Colin Jost and Pete Davidson to Star in Wedding Comedy 'Worst Man' for Universal (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on June 17, 2020. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
  51. ^ Kurp, Josh (December 17, 2014). "Colin Jost Was A Contestant On 'The Weakest Link' In 2002". Uproxx. Archived from the original on March 8, 2019. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  52. ^ "SNL "Weekend Update" hosts Michael Che & Colin Jost to be special guests on Raw". WWE. March 3, 2019. Archived from the original on March 4, 2019. Retrieved March 4, 2019.
  53. ^ Jost, Colin (2020). A Very Punchable Face: A Memoir. Crown. ISBN 978-1101906323.
  54. ^ "From SNL and YouTube to CBS and CNN: Peabody Awards Handed Out To 36". TVNewser. May 18, 2009. Archived from the original on November 4, 2014. Retrieved July 30, 2012.
  55. ^ "2014 Writers Guild Awards Winners Announced" (Press release). Writers Guild of America. February 1, 2014. Archived from the original on July 1, 2014. Retrieved August 7, 2014.
  56. ^ McNary, Dave (December 4, 2014). "'Game of Thrones,' 'True Detective,' 'Transparent' Lead WGA TV Nominations". Variety. Archived from the original on December 26, 2014. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
  57. ^ McNary, Dave (January 6, 2016). "'The Martian,' 'Straight Outta Compton' Land Writers Guild Nominations". Variety. Archived from the original on January 7, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
  58. ^ Lewis, Dave (July 14, 2016). "Nominations for the 68th Primetime Emmy Awards". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on July 14, 2016. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
  59. ^ Petski, Denise (December 5, 2016). "WGA TV Nominations: 'The Americans', 'Stranger Things', 'Westworld', 'This Is Us' Among Nominees". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on December 6, 2016. Retrieved December 7, 2016.
  60. ^ "Emmys 2017: Full List of Nominations". Variety. July 13, 2017. Archived from the original on June 26, 2019. Retrieved July 13, 2017.
  61. ^ a b Pedersen, Erik (December 7, 2017). "WGA Awards: Top TV Noms Include 'Handmaid's Tale', 'Stranger Things', 'The Americans', 'GLOW'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on December 11, 2017. Retrieved December 13, 2017.
  62. ^ "Emmys: Netflix Beats HBO With Most Nominations". The Hollywood Reporter. July 12, 2018. Archived from the original on January 27, 2020. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
  63. ^ McNary, Dave (December 6, 2018). "Writers Guild Awards Announces 2019 TV Nominees". Variety. Archived from the original on December 21, 2018. Retrieved December 8, 2018.
  64. ^ Aridi, Sara (July 16, 2019). "Here's a Full List of the 2019 Emmy Nominations". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 19, 2019. Retrieved July 16, 2019.
  65. ^ Pedersen, Erik (July 22, 2019). "WGA Sets Writers Guild Awards 2019–20 Timeline". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on July 23, 2019. Retrieved July 24, 2019.

External links

Media offices
Preceded by
Seth Meyers
SNL Head Writer with Seth Meyers
2012–14
Succeeded by
himself
(with Rob Klein and Bryan Tucker)
Preceded by
Seth Meyers and himself
SNL Head Writer
(with Rob Klein and Bryan Tucker)

2014–15
Succeeded by
Rob Klein and Bryan Tucker
Preceded by
Seth Meyers and Cecily Strong
Weekend Update anchor with Cecily Strong
March 1 – May 17, 2014
September 27, 2014 – present
With: Michael Che
Succeeded by
Incumbent
Preceded by
Chris Kelly, Sarah Schneider, Bryan Tucker, and Kent Sublette
SNL Head Writer
(with Michael Che, Bryan Tucker, and Kent Sublette)

December 16, 2017 – May 19, 2018
Succeeded by
himself
(with Michael Che and Kent Sublette)
Preceded by
Himself, Michael Che, Bryan Tucker, and Kent Sublette
SNL Head Writer
(with Michael Che, and Kent Sublette)

September 29, 2018 – May 9, 2020
Succeeded by
Himself
(with Michael Che, Kent Sublette, and Anna Drezen)
Preceded by
Himself, Michael Che, and Kent Sublette
SNL Head Writer
(with Michael Che, Kent Sublette, and Anna Drezen)

October 3, 2020 – December 18, 2021
Succeeded by
Himself
(with Michael Che, Kent Sublette, Alison Gates, and Streeter Seidell)
Preceded by
Himself, Michael Che, Kent Sublette, and Anna Drezen
SNL Head Writer
(with Michael Che, Kent Sublette, Alison Gates, and Streeter Seidell)

January 15 – May 21, 2022
Succeeded by
Kent Sublette, Alison Gates, and Streeter Seidell