Colin​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌ Jost comments on Zoe Saldaña replacing his wife Scarlett Johansson as the highest-grossing star in ​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌Hollywood

Colin​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌ Jost Risks His Reputation by Mocking Himself After Scarlett Johansson Being Overtaken by Zoe Saldaña

Colin Jost couldn’t help making a joke at the expense of his wife Scarlett Johansson—and his own movie career—when it came to the light that Avatar actress Zoe Saldaña had taken over Johansson as the biggest earner among actors.
During the Weekend Update segment on Saturday Night Live on Jan. 17, Jost presented the joke while behind him there was a screen showing a bar graph of the actresses’ box office earnings. “Zoe Saldaña—who is in the new Avatar movie—has gone past Scarlett Johansson as the highest‑grossing actress of all time,” he stated.
“Alright, let’s check out what happens if you also take into account the box office of Scarlett’s husband’s ​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌films,”

Colin​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌ Jost Reacts as SNL Graphic ”Drops” Scarlett Johansson’s Box Office Total

Colin Jost joked about his wife being displaced by Zoe Saldaña as Hollywood’s highest‑grossing actor, and SNL humorously “lowered” Scarlett Johansson’s box office total.
The show had a graphic of Scarlett’s box office sliding down from $15.4 billion to $15.1 billion. Colin Jost, 43, laughed so much that he asked, “Did it go down?”
The joke came after the news that Zoe Saldaña who stars in Emilia Pérez, has quenched her thirst for movie stardom and beat Johansson, mainly through James Cameron’s box‑office‑breaking Avatar trilogy. Box Office Mojo announced that as of Jan. 12, Avatar: Fire and Ash, one of the four installments, has earned $1.23 billion worldwide, which raised Saldaña’s total box-office takings to $16.8 billion, per Screen Rant.
Johansson, who turns 41 this year, is a mother to daughter Rose, 11, whom she had with her ex‑husband Romain Dauriac, and son Cosmo, 4, whom she had with Jost. With a $16.4 billion record in hand, she was overtaken by Saldaña. Next up on the list of the highest-grossing movie stars are Marvel co-stars Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Downey Jr., and Chris ​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌Pratt.

Colin​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌ Jost Makes Light of Scarlett Johansson’s Viral Kiss and Mocks Jonathan Bailey

Colin Jost isn’t afraid to make jokes about his wife Scarlett Johansson’s moments — even if they go viral.
Talking about Scarlett’s hugely viral kiss with her Jurassic World Rebirth costar Jonathan Bailey, Jost quipped during a July 2025 Entertainment Tonight interview, “I guess in Jurassic Park, the allegory would be, the attack always comes from the raptor you didn’t expect. I wasn’t thinking it was Jonathan of all the threats.”
Jost argued that the incident was exaggerated. “I think it’ll be fine. People really blew it way out of proportion. If somebody kisses their friend hello, it’s really quite a sweet thing.”
Also, there wasn’t any kind of a rift between Jost and the Bridgerton star — actually, they even joked about balancing the scales.
“Jonathan is a gay man who has come out — so it didn’t look like the biggest threat,” Jost said jokingly. “Jonathan and I were on the red carpet like, ‘Should we kiss each other now? Will that sort of finish the ​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌story?’”