Overview
- The two former SNL contributors made the disclosures in late May 2026 during a Netflix Is A Joke Festival conversation and on The Pete Davidson Show podcast, as reported by multiple outlets.
- Both said they routinely comforted hosts after weak opening monologues by praising the performance and giving face‑saving explanations.
- They named common excuses they used, including blaming the studio’s acoustics, saying the live audience were tourists who might not react, and urging hosts to play for the cameras.
- Mulaney quantified the problem from his writer’s view, saying hosts he wrote for would “tank” about eight times out of ten when he was younger, while Davidson described telling hosts they were performing for viewers at home.
- The anecdotes were delivered as comic, insider tales rather than investigative revelations and highlight how SNL’s cast and writers manage live failures to protect careers and preserve the show’s flow.