Colin Jost Says Scarlett Johansson Took His $280K Ferry Purchase in Stride

When Colin Jost decided to purchase a decommissioned Staten Island ferry boat to the tune of $280,000 with fellow Saturday Night Live alum Pete Davidson in 2022, the unorthodox decision became the butt of many jokes — several made by Jost himself. But he says that his wife, Scarlett Johansson, is one person who’s taken the investment in stride.

Speaking to People in an interview posted Friday, September 13, Jost, 42, quipped that the ferry “is absolutely the dumbest and least thought-through purchase I’ve ever made in my life … The way I justified it is for the amount of money we were putting into buying it, on just a basic square-footage level, is if you found the right place for it to be, you were essentially buying a building on its side that’s 65,000 square feet. So around New York, that is a very good price per square foot.”

However, he noted that Johansson, 39, while initially disbelieving that he’d actually bought the craft, has been supportive.

“She was just like, ‘Wait, so you own this boat now?’ Very fair question,” Jost said of Johansson’s reaction. “She now obviously sees the value in it, but also I think she’s like, ‘It’s now become something that is a defining thing for you guys and an interesting thing for you guys. So you should take it seriously and figure out the best version of it, because for better or worse, it’s going to reflect on you.'”

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That said: “[Pete and I] don’t care because we’re comedians,” Jost joked.

Jost and Davidson, 30, bought the ferry two years ago with the intent to transform it into an entertainment venue, but not much has come of that particular endeavor as of yet. (Jost did speak to the outlet from the ferry, which was hosting a Tommy Hilfiger show on board during New York Fashion Week.) He’s taken the chatter and ribbing about the extravagant purchase in good humor, even making his own pointed barbs aimed at himself on SNL.

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“This year marks the first time since 2009 that a Marvel movie has not kicked off the summer movie season,” he deadpanned during the May 11 episode of the comedy sketch show in its ‘Weekend Update” segment. “[It] better be a one-time thing because a lot of people rely on Marvel movies to pay for the ferries they bought.” (Johansson has starred as Black Widow in the Marvel Cinematic Universe since 2010.)

Jost has been married to Johansson since 2020 after meeting her on the set of SNL.