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Chevy Chase says it was a "mistake" to leave Saturday Night Live
The comedian has criticized the show in recent years, and opens up about his exit in a new CNN Films documentary I'm Chevy Chase and You're Not
Chase was part of the original cast when SNL debuted in 1975 and established the Weekend Update segment
Chevy Chaseis reflecting on his exit fromSaturday Night Live— and how it was "a mistake" on his part.
The star, who was a cast member of the sketch comedy show from 1975 to 1976, speaks aboutSNLin the new CNN Films documentaryI'm Chevy Chase and You're Not, a trailer for which was debuted byEntertainment Weekly.
"It was a mistake to leaveSNL," Chase says in a preview for the documentary.
Chase was part of the original cast whenSNLdebuted in 1975 and established the Weekend Update segment that is currently co-anchored by Michael Che andColin Jost. He left in the middle of the show's second season.
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Chase last appeared on the NBC show for its40th anniversary specialin 2015, and has, in recent years, said he believes the show could be funnier.
In a 2018 interview with theWashington Post, Chase said of show creatorLorne Michaels: "I don't want to put down Lorne or the cast, but I'll just say … I'm amazed that Lorne has gone so low. I had to watch a little of it, and I just couldn't f------ believe it. That means a whole generation of s--- heads laughs at the worst f------ humor in the world. You know what I mean? How could you dare give that generation worse s--- than they already have in their lives? It just drives me nuts."
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Elsewhere in the interview, he claimed the show went downhill after his exit, telling thePost, "I'd have to say, that after the first two years, it went downhill. Why am I saying that? Because I was in it? I guess. That's a horrible thing to say. But certainly I never had more fun. I really loved it and enjoyed it. I didn't see the same fun thing happening to the cast the next year."
Michaels himself appears in the documentary, saying in the trailer, "The forces pulling him were money, power and all that, and when Hollywood wants you, they're pretty good at it."
The documentary features interviews with many of Chase's peers and former collaborators, including Dan Aykroyd, Martin Short and Goldie Hawn. Beverly D'Angelo, who played Chase's on-screen wife in all five of theVacationfilms, can also be seen in the trailer, alluding to her former co-star's reputation for being difficult to get along with.
"The thing about fame is that everything around you changes," D'Angelo says in the trailer.
I'm Chevy Chase and You're Notwill premiere on CNN on Jan. 1, 2026, at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
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