This week, Chevy Chase informed CBS Sunday Morning that he “couldn’t care less” about reports and ex-colleagues portraying him as problematic on set.
The “Saturday Night Live” veteran and comedy legend has been characterized by co-stars as racist, misogynistic, and “horrific” over time, but he appears to be unbothered.
“You’d have to ask them,” Chase replied when questioned if the rumors of him being a “jerk” are baseless.
“I couldn’t care less. I am who I am. And I like who I am. I don’t care. And it’s part of me that I don’t care. And I’ve considered that a lot. And I don’t know what to tell you, man. I just don’t care.”
Donald Glover, Chase’s co-star in the NBC sitcom “Community,” told The New Yorker in 2018 that Chase consistently made racist remarks on set.
The profile reported that Chase “frequently attempted to disrupt” his scenes with Glover by making “racial jabs between takes,” one example being: “People think you’re funnier because you’re Black.”
“Chevy was the first to recognize how incredibly talented Donald was, and the way he expressed his envy was by trying to throw Donald off,” said “Community” creator Dan Harmon at the time.
“I recall apologizing to Donald after a particularly rough night of Chevy’s non-P.C. language, and Donald said, ‘I don’t even worry about it.'”
Glover viewed Chase’s racist jabs as the comedian “flailing in the water,” adding, “I just saw Chevy as battling time—a true artist must accept that their reign will end.”
“I can’t help him if he’s flailing in the water. But I know there’s a human being in there somewhere—he’s almost too human.”
In response to Glover, Chase said he was “disheartened to hear” Glover “viewed [him] in that manner.”
Pete Davidson, a “Saturday Night Live” star, labeled Chase “an effing douchebag” in 2018 after Chase criticized the current “SNL” cast.
Davidson went on to say, “Screw Chevy Chase. He’s just a genuinely awful, racist individual, and I don’t like him. He’s a jerk.”
As reported by Us Weekly, the 2002 book “Live From New York: An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live” contains numerous accounts of Chase’s troublesome conduct.
Will Ferrell dubbed Chase “the worst host” after the latter’s February 1997 “SNL” appearance.
“I don’t know if he was under the influence or what, if he took too many back pills that day or something, but he was just sort of roaming the room and systematically riffing,” Ferrell stated.
“When he approached one of our female writers, he made a remark like, ‘Maybe you can give me a handjob later.’ And I’ve never seen Lorne [Michaels] more mortified and red.”
