Morgan Wallen reveals why he abruptly left 'SNL' during closing segment
(NEXSTAR) – Morgan Wallen’s abrupt exit after his latest appearance on “Saturday Night Live” has sparked plenty of controversy over the last month of so, but Wallen himself had yet to comment on the March 29 incident until now.
In an appearance on the “Sundae Conversations” web series with Caleb Pressley, Wallen said he wasn’t upset or mad at anyone involved with the show, but just wanted to go home.
“No, no,” Wallen said, after Pressley asked if he was somehow angered by the cast or crew. “I was just ready to go home. I been there all week.”
Wallen, 31, had appeared as the musical guest on the March 29 episode of “Saturday Night Live” to promote his upcoming album “I’m the Problem.” At the end of the show, Wallen appeared on the stage alongside the host of that episode — Oscar-winning “Anora” actor Mikey Madison — while she thanked the crew. But almost as soon as the credits began to roll, Wallen hugged Madison and walked off the stage, and right past the camera, while everyone else stayed on-camera through the credits, as is usually the tradition.
Not long after, Wallen posted a photo of a plane to his Instagram stories overlaid with text reading, “Get me to God’s country.”
Some fans of the show took offense to Wallen’s exit, which they viewed as rude. But others — mostly critics of “SNL” — applauded Wallen for what they viewed as an intentional act of defiance.
Even “SNL” cast member Kenan Thompson remarked on the incident, telling Entertainment Weekly he was confused by the whole thing.
"I don't know what goes through people's minds when they decide to do stuff like that. I don't know if he understood the assignment or not, or if he was really feeling a certain kind of way," Thompson said.
Only a few hours after his “SNL” episode ended, Morgan seemed to fuel controversy by posting an image of a plane on Instagram, overlaid with text reading, “Get me to God’s country.” (His official website later started selling merchandise with the slogan.)
Sources for Wallen, however, said in the following days that Wallen had no ill will toward “SNL” or the crew, while another told TMZ that Wallen would exit the stage the same way during rehearsals, and may have unintentionally done the same thing during the broadcast.
In any case, Wallen didn’t seem too bothered by the incident when Pressley brought it up on “Sundae Conversations.” He also laughed off Pressley’s jokes about his previous legal troubles during the interview, which was filmed in a bar.
“Hopefully I don’t violate my probation by being here,” Wallen said. “Shout-out to my PO.”