Variety reports that Shane Gillis returned to host 'Saturday Night Live' on October 10 for the third time since his 2019 firing, emerging in a matching black T-shirt and pants for what the magazine calls a 'meandering monologue' about needing to lose weight and being miserable while hiking. The Express Tribune, which also covered the appearance, notes that several jokes — including remarks about women's gym clothing — prompted groans rather than laughter from the in-studio audience. Variety notes the routine ended abruptly after a hairline punchline landed with few laughs.

Variety recounts the material in detail: Gillis joked that going to a New York public gym 'as a fat guy' is a nightmare, then said he hadn't been to the gym in so long he 'didn't know women just dress like whores now,' a line Variety says drew groans from the crowd. He also riffed on his receding hairline, telling the audience he had 'balded directly into an Adolf Hitler haircut' and closing with, 'You're either gay or you're Hitler, and isn't that where we're at as a country?' The Independent reports the gym line generated a wave of backlash on social media, with viewers calling it slut-shaming ordinary women for what they wear.

Both Variety and The Express Tribune frame this as a recurring problem for Gillis on this particular stage. Variety observes that Gillis has shown 'considerable comedy chops' in his stand-up specials and hosting the ESPYs, but that nailing an 'SNL' monologue seems to be elusive for him — he bombed his first hosting monologue in 2024, blaming the Gen Z crowd for not getting his Civil War jokes, before impressing with popular sketches like 'CouplaBeers.' The Express Tribune draws the same conclusion, writing that his SNL monologues have proved more challenging even as his stand-up and other hosting appearances demonstrate his abilities.

The backstory is well documented across the pack: Gillis, 38, was announced as a new cast member in September 2019 alongside Chloe Fineman and Bowen Yang, then fired five days later after podcast clips resurfaced showing him mocking Asians and using anti-gay slurs. Variety adds that Lorne Michaels later told The Wall Street Journal he was forced to make the move by NBC brass, and has since been on a mission to make good — even offering Gillis the role of Donald Trump for SNL's 50th season, which he turned down. Gillis rebuilt a career outside the show with stand-up specials, the Netflix series 'Tires' and a role in the upcoming biopic 'Madden.'

The Guardian's review describes Gillis as a 'game host' in an episode the critic calls part of the season's continued subpar streak. The recap notes the monologue was 'a watered-down version of his normal material' with self-aware bro-y edge, and that the audience stayed with him 'for the most part, even if they're not exactly rolling in the aisles.' The Guardian also flags that Gillis stumbled over his lines and dropped a live F-bomb during a 'Green Eggs and Ham' sketch, and argues it seems clearer than ever Gillis was never going to work on SNL — yet host and show can't quit each other.

USA Today notes Gillis apologized at the show's goodnights, saying 'Sorry about earlier' — a reference to the on-air swearing, though The Independent reports some viewers were slower to realize which controversy he was addressing. The Independent says it contacted Gillis for comment on the monologue backlash. Meanwhile, the fallout remains uncertain: Us Weekly reports it is not presently known whether Gillis or the show will face an FCC fine, citing former cast member Ego Nwodim's account that no fine followed a 2025 audience expletive. The Guardian predicts he may be only a couple of years from the Five Timers Club.