Leslie Jones recently shared her experience confronting the writers of “Saturday Night Live” about being frequently cast in roles characterized by anger and aggression.
During the June 12 episode of “The Sam Sanders Show,” the comedian expressed her frustration at consistently being portrayed as an irate character or someone romantically entangled with a white man.
“They would always depict me as someone who was either angry or fighting with someone,” she continued.
Jones, who was a part of the beloved sketch comedy show between 2014 and 2019, revealed that she requested the writers to reconsider this portrayal — a plea that was dismissed.
Reflecting on their response, she stated, “They said, ‘This works. Once you leave, you’ll have opportunities…’ But I countered, ‘I don’t aspire to be like Chevy Chase or anyone else. I want to be uniquely Leslie and explore diverse roles.’”
Jones continued: “I would tell them, ‘Hey, can I be in this sketch?’ ‘Hey, when do I get to play a man?’ They would let them do other stuff, and then they wouldn’t let me play as much as I wanted to play.”
The 58-year-old said she once spoke to creator Lorne Michaels about some of the racial “undertones” happening behind-the-scenes.
“You know, there be some racist stuff be happening up through here,” she stated, before claiming that “misogyny is heavier than the racism” at “SNL.”
Despite her grievances, Jones said she still played ball with the NBC program because she knew that was best for her career.
“I wanted to be on the show,” she said, “and at the time I didn’t think that was what was happening ‘till it kept happening. And then every time I would get a sketch, I was like, ‘Okay, who am I beating up this week?’”
Jones also called “SNL” a “machine” that will never change because “It’s been successful” since it premiered in 1975.
“If you wanna be there, go there, because it is a great foundation,” she said as advice to up-and-coming comedians. “It is a great place for you still to find yourself. You can definitely get love going there.”
However, Jones noted comics need to have “a very strong personality” and be “very secure in yourself” if they want to be on the show.
When asked to sum up her experience, Jones called it “bittersweet” because while she “loved being there” and had “fun,” she doesn’t “miss the mental part” of the job.
Page Six has reached out to “SNL” for comment.
Jones joined “SNL” as a writer during Season 39 in 2014, before being promoted to an official cast member later that year.
At the time, Jones was the oldest new recruit in the show’s history at age 47.
She earned two Emmy nominations for her performance before departing the series in 2019.