Michael Che Told Colin Jost They Weren’t Doing A Joke Swap And Then Did The Joke Swap Anyway

by

Michael Che really upped the awkwardness of Weekend Update’s annual Christmas Joke Swap this year. He told Colin Jost he didn’t want to participate, but then unexpectedly announced they were doing it live on air, completely surprising his co-anchor.

Jost seemed genuinely surprised and upset when Che unexpectedly asked him to read jokes he hadn’t written himself. Che, looking pleased with himself, simply said Jost would have to use the jokes that he had prepared. Jost reluctantly went along with it, reading jokes that were often edgy and covered sensitive topics like race, sexual abuse, and a comment about his wife, Scarlett Johansson, aging. It was clear he wasn’t happy about having to deliver the material. You can see the whole segment below.

The Joke Swap is always a highlight of Weekend Update. Every year, during the Christmas show and the season finale, the anchors make each other read terrible jokes they haven’t seen before. Che usually gives Jost the worse jokes, but after this particularly harsh round, it’s clear Jost will be looking for payback later in the season. He’ll likely get his revenge during the final show, though he might team up with the writers to get even sooner.

What makes Jost and Che such a great team – they’ve been working together at the Weekend Update desk longer than anyone else on the show – is their clear and genuine connection. They playfully tease each other, and their reactions feel more like those of siblings than just colleagues.

These joke exchanges often feel playful, even though the content can be shockingly offensive. It’s clear the participants are more focused on one-upping and punishing each other than actually making a statement about the groups or topics they’re targeting.

We don’t know how many more times we’ll see the ‘Joke Swap’ segment. It seems likely there will be one in the season finale after everything that just happened, but after that, it’s uncertain. There was talk over the summer that the comedic duo might leave Saturday Night Live, but they decided to return. However, they have a lot of other options now, so we might not be so fortunate next summer. For now, we’ll just have to wait and see what happens.

As a big SNL fan, I’m a little sad it’s taking a break for the Christmas holidays! But I’m already looking forward to the new year when it comes back – I can’t wait to see who they get to host, and of course, I’m counting on Weekend Update to still be hilarious as always.

Read More

2025-12-21 17:38