'SNL' nixed Hegseth 'Pulp Fiction' riff as 'too ridiculous,' Jost says

Mike Snider, USA TODAYSat, May 16, 2026 at 7:07 PM UTC

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'SNL' nixed Hegseth 'Pulp Fiction' riff as 'too ridiculous,' Jost says

Truth can be stranger than "Pulp Fiction," says "Saturday Night Live" comedian and writer Colin Jost.

During a May 14 interview on "The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon," Jost told the late-night host how the 'SNL' writers had been discussing possibilities for Hegseth sketches two months ago. "I was like, 'would it be funny if Hegseth just did that Bible verse that they have in "Pulp Fiction"?'" Jost said.

But the writers nixed the idea. "We talked about it and we're like that would be too ridiculous," Jost said. "And then he, for real, did it like two weeks later."

After Jost and Fallon laugh about it, Jost said, "I was like, 'Well, the good news is I'm being surveilled.'"

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Colin Jost says its 'crazy' Pete Hegseth quoted 'Pulp Fiction'

During an April 15 Pentagon worship service, Hegseth recounted a prayer he said had been told to him by an Air Force rescue operation leader. While Hegseth's prayer echoed scripture, specifically Ezekiel 25:17, part of it appeared to paraphrase a line better known for "Pulp Fiction" than from the Bible.

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In the film, Samuel L. Jackson's character cited a fictionalized Ezekiel 25:17 verse including the phrase, "And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon you."

When Jost heard about the April 15 incident, "it was crazy," he said.

On the May 9 "SNL" episode, Jost's Hegseth bumps into Supreme Court Justice Brett Cavanaugh (Matt Damon) and FBI director Kash Patel (Aziz Ansari) at a bar. "It's very intimidating to have to go out and act next to Matt Damon," he said. "In 'SNL,' you just have to pretend you can hang."

Contributing: Mike Stunson

Mike Snider is a national trending news reporter for USA TODAY. You can follow him on Threads, Bluesky, X and email him at  mikegsnider  &  @mikegsnider.bsky.social &  @mikesnider & msnider@usatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'SNL' nixed Hegseth 'Pulp Fiction' sketch as 'too ridiculous'

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”