Jerrod Carmichael jokes hosting 'SNL' is 'the gayest thing you can possibly do'
Jerrod Carmichael had plenty of headlines to tackle in his "Saturday Night Live" opening monologue.
Of course, there was the Will Smith/Chris Rock slap to discuss (whether he wanted to or not). But the comedian and actor also made headlines of his own this weekend following the release of his stand-up comedy special, "Jerrod Carmichael: Rothaniel," which debuted Friday.
For those who hadn't watched yet, Carmichael told audiences he officially came out as gay in the special: "I've been gay for, like, 48 hours," he joked.
The comedian was met with cheers and applause from the audience in Studio 8H, "which is nice and an expected response in New York," Carmichael said.
"That's actually why I live here," he said. "If you say you're gay in New York, you can ride the bus for free and they just give you free pizza. if you say you're gay in New York, you get to host 'Saturday Night Live.' This is the gayest thing you can possibly do. We're basically in an Andy Warhol fever dream right now."
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In his new comedy special, Carmichael told the audience that he "never thought (he'd) come out."
"At many points in my life, I thought I'd rather die than confront the truth of that than actually say it to people," Carmichael said. "Because I know it changes some people's perception of me; I can't control that."
Carmichael also shared that he "stayed in the closet for a long time" in part because of his mother, who he describes as a "God-fearing" Christian woman. "But as much as she believes in God, I believe in personal growth and feeling free. I feel freer," he said.
Carmichael recently appeared in the drama "On The Count of Three," which made waves at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival. Previously, he starred in "The Carmichael Show" alongside Tiffany Haddish, Lil Rel Howery, David Alan Grier and Amber Stevens West. And he has released three HBO stand-up comedy specials: 2014's "Love at the Store," 2017's "8" and "Rothaniel."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jerrod Carmichael hosts 'SNL,' talks coming out as gay
