‘SNL’ Star Chloe Fineman Faces Backlash Over ‘Pantsing’ Story About Child

SNL star Chloe Fineman is facing backlash for a story she told in a Vanity Fair video released on March 31. In the clip, titled SNL Cast Test How Well They Know Each Other, she played a game with co-stars Mikey Day, Sarah Sherman, Ashley Padilla, Jane Wickline, and James Austin Johnson.

Fineman had the other stars guess which job she was fired from at sixteen. After some incorrect guesses, Fineman revealed that she was let go as a camp counselor after pantsing a six-year-old boy.

“He would lift my shirt all the time,” she explained. “It was a different time. He would be like, ‘Hey, could I have a hug?’ And then I’d go to hug him and he’d lift my shirt, like a dick. And then I was like, ‘I’m going to get back at you.’ And so we were on a hike and I was like, ‘Hey, Ollie, go look over there. It’s a hawk.’ He looked and then I yanked his pants down, and then I was fired.”

According to Variety, the original video was edited to take out Padilla saying, “Oh, honey, I think you’re on a list somewhere.” It also allegedly removed Fineman explaining, “He wasn’t wearing underpants, and then a giant school bus drove by.”

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Many comments underneath the video weren’t happy with the story. One person said, “That first story is one where friends will say, ‘Yeah, you shouldn’t tell that one.’” Someone else said, “I’m not sure why in this current climate, Chloe thought that would be a funny story to share or why Vanity Fair would air it.”

Fineman is known for her celebrity impressions, which include Drew Barrymore, Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon, and Jennifer Coolidge. She joined SNL in 2019 during season 45, along with Bowen Yang and Shane Gillis, and was promoted to repertory status ahead of season 47 in 2021.