Elon Musk responds to ‘SNL’ star Chloe Fineman’s claim he made her cry

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has responded to claims by Saturday Night Live cast member Chloe Fineman that he made her cry while hosting the show in 2021.

 In a now-deleted TikTok post, Fineman revealed that Musk’s harsh critique of a sketch she wrote reduced her to tears. “He’s the host that made someone cry,” Fineman stated, recalling that Musk looked at her “like you were firing me from Tesla” as he gave feedback. E! News later shared excerpts of her video, where Fineman said Musk bluntly told her he “didn’t laugh once.”

Musk, who criticized SNL’s recent sketches on X (formerly Twitter), responded, noting he feared his episode would be “so unfunny that it will make a crackhead sober!” and claimed only Thursday’s rehearsals before the live show “generated laughs.” This incident resurfaced after SNL cast member Bowen Yang hinted in August that a guest host made several cast members cry during his time on the show, though Yang did not name Musk directly.

The news adds to the already contentious relationship between Musk and SNL, as the billionaire has previously criticized the show for being “out of touch.” Musk’s appearance in 2021 stirred debate over his performance and his interactions with the SNL team.