Comedian Punkie Johnson is offering insight into the reasons behind her exit from Saturday Night Live.
After announcing in early August that she wouldn’t be returning to SNL for its upcoming 50th season, the stand-up comic revealed on SNL alums Dana Carvey and David Spade’s Fly on the Wall podcast that she never fully adjusted to the show’s structure.
“I talked to my team. I was like, ‘Look, I don’t really know if I belong at this job, so maybe I should step away,’” Johnson said.
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The comedian, who joined the show as a featured player in 2020 and was promoted to a regular cast member two years later, said her background in stand-up comedy made it difficult for her to find her footing on the show.
“I never grew up in sketch, I never went to a sketch school, I didn’t really feel like I fit, like that was my zone,” she said. “That show is for a different type of person. I’m crazy, more out-the-box, I’m all over the place. That [show] is a structure.”
She noted that the departure of a writer she worked closely with on personal sketches contributed to her decision to leave.
“By February of last season, I was like nope, I’m done,” Johnson said.
Despite leaving SNL, Johnson said she is currently working on a movie and a comedy special with creator Lorne Michaels. She expressed her continued appreciation for the show that brought her national recognition.
Johnson made history as the first openly queer Black woman on SNL. Another cast member, Molly Kearney, who was the first nonbinary performer on the sketch comedy series, also recently announced their departure after two seasons.
Season 50 of Saturday Night Live premieres Sept. 28 on NBC.
Watch the full interview below:
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