Tony Hinchcliffe claims his Kill Tony podcast is more relevant than SNL

Tony Hinchcliffe did not sugarcoat his feelings about Saturday Night Live. The comedian, and host of the wildly successful podcast Kill Tony, talked about the show during a recent interview with Pollstar.

While most comedians would default to being reverent, Hinchcliffe went the opposite direction and characterized SNL as a failing institution. He claimed the show was lacking relevance in 2024, and his podcast has effectively surpassed it in terms comedic taste-making.

Tony Hinchcliffe criticized SNL's safe approach

Tony Hinchcliffe bragged about eating SNL's lunch when asked about the success of Kill Tony as a live show. "Shane Gillis doing his Donald Trump, Adam Ray as Joe Biden, Dr. Phil and many more — they could have had that," the comedian asserted.

He went on to note that Saturday Night Live has foregone their relevance due to their unwillingness to associate with controversial comedians like himself or Gillis:

"These are the new stars, the backbone of modern-day comedy... and watching them break character because they’re cracking each other up, is just priceless. "

It's worth noting that Gillis was a cast member on Saturday Night Live, but was fired less than a week later due to the discovery of a podcast appearance in which he used racial slurs. Gillis has gone on to become a star in his own right, thanks to his Kill Tony appearances and work with Netflix.

Hinchcliffe's podcast recently sold out MSG (twice)

Tony Hinchcliffe's claims are certainly bold, but it's difficult to deny the success of Kill Tony. The live podcast recently sold out Madison Square Garden twice in the span of a month. A staggering feat the host attributes to a genuine sense of camaraderie between comedians.

"It’s not written out, it’s not rehearsed," Hinchcliffe explained. "Everything is improvised, and that’s the secret sauce of Kill Tony." Hinchcliffe, like Gillis, landed in hot water after using slurs against an Asian American comedian, but he refused to apologize. He told Variety that a comic should always stand by their material, regardless of it offends others.

"My stance is that comedians should never apologize for a joke, should never stop working if everyone comes after them and should never slow down," he concluded. It's definitely not for everybody, but it's an approach that seems to be working well for him.

SNL has a much bigger cultural footprint than the Kill Tony podcast, but it's undeniable that the latter has momentum and a buzz that the sketch show hasn't had in years. Here's hoping the 50 anniversary will restore some of it.