Colin Jost Opens Up About Scarlett Johansson's Reaction to His Staten Island Ferry Purchase

Colin Jost is opening up about how his wife Scarlett Johansson reacted to learning that he and Pete Davidson had bought a retired Staten Island Ferry.

During an appearance on the Smartless podcast set to air May 4th, the 43-year-old SNL star and comedian detailed the text exchange that followed his announcement of the purchase.

Jost explained that his initial instinct was to loop in his father first. "He literally was like, 'Did you do your homework?' Which is such a teacher thing to say," the Weekend Update anchor recalled. "I was like, 'Dad, I'm just sort of texting you as a formality. I already bought the boat.'"

His next message went to Johansson. "Guess what? We own a ferry now," Jost recounted texting to his wife. Her response was characteristically brief: "We?"

On the podcast, Jost framed the acquisition through a real estate lens. "If you put that on a dock in Manhattan, you've suddenly got basically a building on the waterfront," he explained.

The actor also addressed skepticism surrounding the investment, pushing back against characterizations of the ferry as a financial burden. "It's very misreported that it is some sort of crazy money pit," Jost said, noting that the couple has already hosted events and recovered much of their initial investment.

Looking ahead, Jost outlined his vision for the vessel's future use. "A home run for me is its a thing that could be used for an event space but also has an every-day purpose," he shared. He envisions two potential directions: either transforming it into an operating entertainment venue with regular parties, or creating a more accessible swim club—"not like a weird, fancy member's club, but is actually more middle-class, Manhattan swim club."

In other entertainment news, Johansson has been filming her upcoming Exorcist movie, while Jost is preparing to return as host of Netflix's Pop Culture Jeopardy!