Cecily Strong Reportedly Backed Out Of Returning To ‘SNL’ For A Sketch Because It Left Her ‘Uncomfortable’

Cecily Strong left SNL last year after a decade, making her the longest tenured female cast member in the show’s long history. During her lengthy stint, she was no stranger to playing obnoxious far right characters. Perhaps her most famous impersonation was of Jeanine Pirro, whom she depicted as a boozy, braying maniac prone to spilling red wine everywhere. She was supposed to play another MAGA maniac on the most recent episode. But when the sketch went on-air she’d mysteriously been replaced by newish cast member Chloe Troast.

What happened A report by The New York Post delves into what happened behind the scenes of the night’s Cold Open, which as usual tackled politics. This one was more chaotic than most. It covered the ongoing issue involving college campus protests of Israel’s war with Hamas. It’s a powder keg situation, and in rehearsals Strong was to play New York representative Elise Stefanik, who last week railed against three university presidents, one of whom has since resigned.

Alas, Strong pulled out at the “last minute,” says a source, who claimed she was “uncomfortable with the sketch.”

As such, Troast stepped in at the 11th hour to play Stefanik as yet another over-the-top Trump minion, telling academic leaders that “hate speech has no place on college campuses.” Instead, she yelled, “Hate speech belongs in Congress, on Elon Musk’s Twitter, in private dinners with my donors, and in public speeches by my work husband, Donald Trump.”

Had Strong done the sketch, it would have been her first time returning to the show since leaving.