"After
talking with Shane Gillis, we have decided that he will not be joining
'SNL,'" an 'SNL' spokesperson on behalf of Lorne Michaels said in a
statement to CNN. "We want 'SNL' to have a variety of voices and points
of view within the show, and we hired Shane on the strength of his
talent as comedian and his impressive audition for 'SNL.' We were not
aware of his prior remarks that have surfaced over the past few days.
The language he used is offensive, hurtful and unacceptable. We are
sorry that we did not see these clips earlier, and that our vetting
process was not up to our standard."
Following
news of his ouster, Gillis wrote on Twitter, "I'm a comedian who was
funny enough to get 'SNL.' That can't be taken away."
He
added: "Of course I wanted an opportunity to prove myself at 'SNL' but I
understand it would be too much of a distraction. I respect the
decision they made. I'm honestly grateful for the opportunity. I was
always a Mad TV guy anyway."
Tags:
Shane Gillis