Colin Jost says Scarlett Johansson accepted $280,000 ferry purchase in stride — 'Sees the value in it'

When Colin Jost and fellow Saturday Night Live alum Pete Davidson decided to buy a decommissioned Staten Island ferry boat for $280,000 in 2022, the unusual decision became the subject of several jokes, several of which Jost made himself. But he says his wife, Scarlett Johansson, has handled the investment in stride.

Colin Jost and Scarlett Johansson.

Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

In an interview with People on Friday, September 13, Jost, 42, stated that the ferry was "absolutely the dumbest and least thought-through purchase I've ever made in my life." The way I justified it was that for the amount of money we were spending on it, on a basic square-footage basis, if you located the proper location, you were virtually purchasing a building on its side that was 65,000 square feet. So in New York, that is a really fair price per square foot.

However, he stated that Johansson, 39, has been supportive, despite his initial disbelief that he had purchased the craft.

"She just said, 'Wait, so you own this boat now?'" "Very fair question," Jost commented about Johansson's reaction. "She now certainly sees the importance in it, but I also believe she's thinking, 'It's now become something that defines and interests you. So you should take it seriously and try to make the best of it, since it will reflect on you, for better or worse."

"[Pete and I] don't care because we're comedians," Jost quipped.

Jost and Davidson, 30, purchased the ferry two years ago with the intention of turning it into an entertainment venue, but little has come of that endeavor as of yet. (Jost spoke with the outlet from the ship, which was staging a Tommy Hilfiger show on board during New York Fashion Week.) He's taken the gossip and ribbing about the costly purchase in stride, even making direct digs at himself on Saturday Night Live.

"This year marks the first time since 2009 that a Marvel film has not kicked off the summer movie season," he deadpanned during the comedy sketch show's 'Weekend Update' section on May 11. "[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 portrayed Black Widow in the Marvel Cinematic Universe since 2010.)

Jost and Johansson have been married since 2020, after meeting on the set of SNL.