Rob Schneider hits SNL execs where it hurts after new comedian abruptly fired

(File photo: screenshot)

Actor and comedian Rob Schneider gave Shane Gillis a show of support after the newest “Saturday Night Live” cast member was abruptly fired from the show.

At a time when it seems the word has forgotten how to laugh or be forgiving, Schneider offered Gillis some perspective in a tweet saying he was “sorry” that he had been chosen to join the cast of the long-running show in an “era of culture unforgiveness.”

Schneider also correctly pointed out the “risk” it takes to be a comedian and deliver material that might offend or not resonate with an audience. The kind of risk most network execs likely would never take.

(File photo: screenshot)

Gillis was fired from the late-night NBC show after a video surfaced of him using a racial slur during a podcast discussion about a Chinatown neighborhood with another comedian.

“As a former SNL cast member I am sorry that you had the misfortune of being a cast member during this era of cultural unforgiveness where comedic misfires are subject to the intolerable inquisition of those who never risked bombing on stage themselves,” Schneider, an “SNL” alumnus, tweeted Monday.

Gillis had admitted that his past was filled with “a lot of bad misses” but he had not intentionally meant to offend anyone as he initially responded to the surfaced video and the backlash.

But NBC and “SNL” officials were apparently not satisfied and announced that Gillis would not be joining the show while calling the comedian’s comments “offensive, hurtful and unacceptable.”

“After talking with Shane Gillis, we have decided that he will not be joining SNL,” a spokesperson for the show said in a statement on behalf of “SNL” creator and longtime executive producer, Lorne Michaels, according to NBC News.

“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,” the spokesperson said.

Gillis addressed the firing in a tweet on Monday.

Schneider followed up on Twitter to address the “SNL” decision.

The actor added his :last thought” on the issue Tuesday, noting that comedy does not excuse racism.

Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang commented on the NBC decision over the weekend, tweeting about forgiveness.

The 2020 contender whose parents came to the U.S. from Taiwan also noted that Gillis had reached out to him and the two would soon be meeting up.

While social media had weighed in from the start on the Gillis firing, a fresh round of reaction came in to Schneider’s pointed calling out of today’s over-the-top “PC nonsense” and cancel culture, something Yang referred to as well.

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