Overview of Colin Jost
This SmartLess episode is a fast, chaotic, and very funny conversation with Colin Jost, covering everything from his unusual upbringing and late speech development to his long road at Saturday Night Live, his partnership with Michael Che, and his surprisingly ambitious plans for the Staten Island Ferry he co-bought with Pete Davidson. The hosts also dig into his Harvard/Lampoon days, his love of performance, his current projects, and what he still wants to build creatively beyond Weekend Update.
Early Life, Education, and the Road to Comedy
- Colin grew up in Staten Island in a family deeply tied to public service, especially firefighting.
- His mother was chief medical officer at the NYC Fire Department and survived the collapse of the South Tower on 9/11.
- He reportedly didn’t start speaking until close to age four, but he was clearly understanding everything; his first word was “Will” in a joking anecdote, followed by “Jason.”
- He also had a long commute to school:
- Attended Regis High School in Manhattan.
- Rode a bus/ferry/subway route from Staten Island every day.
- In college, he initially expected a practical path:
- Started in economics at Harvard.
- Switched to Russian literature and even spent time studying in St. Petersburg.
- He said he became fluent in Russian.
How He Got Into Comedy and SNL
- Colin realized his interests had always been comedy-adjacent:
- School newspaper, plays, speech/debate, etc., but always focused on the funny version of things.
- At Harvard, he joined The Harvard Lampoon, which became his comedy launching pad.
- He said he cold-submitted a packet to SNL and initially missed the window, but later learned the timing and got in when there was turnover.
- He was hired in the same wave as a powerhouse group including:
- Andy Samberg
- Jason Sudeikis
- Bill Hader
- Kristen Wiig
- The Lonely Island guys
- He started as a writer, eventually became head writer, and later moved to the Weekend Update desk.
Weekend Update, Michael Che, and Finding the Rhythm
- Colin described the transition to Weekend Update as difficult at first:
- He was nervous.
- The format felt new and unforgiving.
- He worried he might lose both the Update job and his writing role.
- He and Michael Che initially expected they might be fired each summer.
- Over time, they found their rhythm and became one of the show’s most successful anchors.
- A memorable story involved Che warning the studio audience not to laugh at Colin, leading to a deliberately brutal live bit that Colin said left him genuinely shaken for a couple of shows.
The Staten Island Ferry Purchase
- A big chunk of the conversation focused on Colin and Pete Davidson’s purchase of a decommissioned Staten Island Ferry.
- Why they bought it:
- Colin had ridden the ferry as part of his school commute.
- The city was auctioning it, and they impulsively jumped in.
- The ferry cost about $280,000, which Colin framed as a bargain for the size and potential.
- His vision for it:
- An event space
- A club-like venue
- A middle-class swim-club style experience
- Possibly a pool on the roof
- A place for weddings, parties, and paid events
- He said they are working through dock/permitting/environmental issues and believe they’re close to securing a permanent spot.
- He also said the project is not the money pit people think, because they’ve already made back some of the cost through events and related uses.
- The hosts loved the absurdity of the idea, especially the possibility of a giant orange ferry appearing in places like Sag Harbor or even Miami.
Current Projects and What’s Next
- Colin talked about his upcoming film The Breadwinner, starring Nate Bargatze.
- He plays a neighborhood stay-at-home dad.
- He said it was fun to shoot and that he rarely gets to perform without the pressure of live TV.
- He also mentioned hosting Pop Culture Jeopardy, saying the contestants are shockingly knowledgeable.
- When asked what he’d still like to do, Colin said he wants to:
- Create something of his own
- Perform in it
- Ideally build a world from his own voice
Notable Banter and Running Jokes
- The conversation was full of classic SmartLess-style roasting:
- Colin teased the hosts about their questions and their memory.
- The group joked about:
- asbestos in his SNL office
- a fake mold-removal company called “Adjacent Abatement”
- a bizarre “school on a bus” anecdote from Jason’s childhood
- weird snack habits, including Swedish Fish
- One of the funniest side moments was a discussion about face molds used at SNL, including a story about Jeff Daniels getting one stuck to his face.
- The episode ends with the hosts joking that Colin’s ferry purchase went from sounding ridiculous to sounding like a smart investment.
Key Takeaways
- Colin Jost is far more versatile than his polished Weekend Update persona suggests.
- His career path was less a straight line and more a series of “follow the funny” decisions.
- The Staten Island Ferry is both a joke and a serious real-estate/event-space experiment.
- His partnership with Michael Che remains one of the strongest comedic duos in TV.
- Even with all his success, he still seems most excited by the idea of building something new.