Actor and comedian Chevy Chase is hitting back at reports of his angry and abusive on-set behavior by, wait for it, being angry and abusive and saying he doesn’t “give a crap. I am who I am.”
Speaking to CBS Sunday Morning, Chase addressed his decades-long reputation for harassing and abusing his co-stars. Reports of his bad behavior date as far back as the 1970s and have often been corroborated by multiple witnesses. When asked about his past actions amid in a modern context, the 78-year-old made no apologies.
“I don’t give a crap,” he said. “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 thought about that a lot. And I don’t know what to tell you, man. I just don’t care.”
Charming.
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Chase also showed no remorse when confronted by recent reports of racism and sexual harassment.
In the past, actor Donald Glover has spoken about racist remarks Chase made when they starred together on the NBC sitcom Community, including allegedly telling him, “People think you’re funnier because you’re Black.”
Then there are Chase’s colleagues from SNL.
In 2018, Pete Davidson attested to Chase’s bad behavior, telling reporters “F*ck Chevy Chase. He’s just a genuinely bad, racist person and I don’t like him. He’s a putz.”
And in 2020, Will Farrell recalled an appearance on the show by Chase in which his behavior was so bad, the cast suspected he might be on drugs.
“I don’t know if he was on something, but he was just kind of going around the room and systematically riffing,” Farrell said.
“First it was on the guys, playfully making fun, until, when he got to one of our female writers, he made some reference like, ‘Maybe you can give me a hand job later.’ In hindsight, I wish we’d all gotten up and walked out of the room.”
Other SNL alums have recalled Chase’s bad behavior, as well. Jane Curtin, Laraine Newman, and Gilda Radner have all gone on record to say they witnessed Chase get into a fistfight with then SNL star Bill Murray one time.
Perhaps most disturbing is an incident that involved Terry Sweeney, the first show’s openly gay cast member.
In 2017, Sweeney said that, while guest-hosting in 1985, Chase harassed him about his sexuality, telling him to “lick my balls” in front of fellow cast member Jon Lovitz. Chase also suggested Sweeney play a gay man dying from AIDS who gets weighed every week on the show. Sweeney later called Chase “a monster.”
Chase’s bad behavior also extends beyond showbiz. In 2018, a minor traffic altercation resulted in him trying to physically attack another driver while screaming, “I am going to ruin your lives!”
Watch the interview below. Or don’t. Then join us in telling Chevy Chase, “Girl, Bye!”
Related: Five Straight Comedians Who Took The ‘Gay Joke’ Way Too Far
cuteguy
Toxic narcissistic a hole. I don’t want to hear he’s too old to change. We are all works in progress until the day we die. Some just choose not to learn from their past mistakes and choose to repeat them
fpcinnyc
Who cares?
novadude
Two questions, in no particular order:
1: Who?
2: Who cares?
Creamsicle
Chevy Chase was infamously toxic while starring in Community. He left hateful voice messages for Dan Harmon and complained about his character, despite getting some of the best lines and bits on the show. Most of them revolving around being an unapologetic a-hole who shows little growth until several tender moments that make it seem like he might be evolving in slow and subtle ways.
It’s a shame that he didn’t take the character’s arc to heart and apply it to his real personality. Because he’s not the comedy legend he thinks himself to be by virtue of being an SNL original cast member. I’m an older Millenial and I barely remember The 3 Amigos, and I personally consider that more of a Steve Martin movie than a Chevy Chase movie.
nitejonboy
Yes, it should have been called the two amigos and that other asshole, because the only humor in the entire movie came from Martin and Short, who were both hilarious and are the only reasons why I still love that movie. Even in the 80’s when he was everywhere, I always got the feeling something was wrong with him, now I know I was right.
Kangol2
Chevy Chase’s long and well-documented asshole-ish behavior aside, he appeared several great comedies in the 1980s, including: Caddyshack (one of the funnest comedies of its era), National Lampoon’s Vacation (and the sequels), and Fletch, also a huge box office hit.
BarryM
Chevy Chase says that he is a liberal and endorsed Joe Biden. I’m surprised to hear all of these objections to him.
Mack
An asshole is an asshole no matter what their politics are but then again you knew that because you are.
Kangol2
You’re surprised because you’re a rigid ideologue. The rest of us can spot a jack@ss when we see him.
cheks
Only republicans place their political party above everything else.
Cam
Right wing troll account says what?
Mr. Stadnick
I thought he was dead.
mateo
Meh. He’s an old fart who peaked 50 years ago. Nothing he has to say is neither very interesting, nor particularly relevant. He needs to be ignored.
Brian
Offensive, yes. And also, extremely lazy. Walking up to a woman at your job and saying, “Give me a handjob,” isn’t even a joke. There’s no setup or punchline. There’s zero humor in that. It’s just weird and creepy.
SFMike
Old news about a person no one cares about anymore anyway.
Fahd
This article is a shocker. Not!
CBS Sunday Morning is the show that highlights celebrities with one foot in the grave; the audience has one and 1/2 feet in the grave.
He’s an old 78, obviously taking a lot of medication; an old crank with a touch of dementia who wants you off his lawn.
BrokebackBob
Put him on blast.
Chrisk
I never really found him particularly funny. He got a lucky break with the movies he got though.
nitejonboy
I’m removing CBS SUNDAY MORNING from my DVR schedule now after celebrating that piece of sh_t. The best revenge for someone like him would be to get alzheimers and then die forgetting that no one ever loved him or that he was ever a celebrity in the first place. And after he’s gone we can all say ” who ? Oh, you know who was great, that Bill Murray, Hilarious!!! Chevy, never heard of him. “
wikidBSTN
Back at ya Chevy – the world doesn’t give a crap about you – or any other washed-up has been.
musiclover703
Remember when he used to open “Weekend Update” by saying “I’m Chevy Chase and you’re not.” At this point, I think we can all exclaim in unison “Thank God for that!”
scotty
i don;t GAF either. my new years resolution was to be LESS tolerant.
BarryM
Spoken like a true leftist.
Jim
He knows he’s a has-been
Cam
Howard Stern has spoken about Chase’s horrible behavior for years.
Nancy Joyzee
w
What an asshole, no one will mourn this has been douchbag when he dies
Fixitnow
Why are we even talking about this washed up has-been. He was never funny just sad and carried by other get performers.
miamirunner
Straight people hate him more than gay people do now anyway. Nobody likes him.
Cozmo2
I thought he was dead. Never watched any of his movies. Don’t like him
Terrycloth
Famous for a few good movies a short stint on SNL .he ego was so huge he left SNL to make movies..He himself said that was a bad movie..famous for once being famous..his real nugget were the National Lampoon vacation movies.
djhachey2020
can we exchange him for betty or mr sagat?/ plssssss? ugh