When Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump sets foot on NBC’s iconic “Saturday Night Live” monologue stage, comedian John Leguizamo won’t be watching.
“I’m all for freedom of speech, don’t get me wrong. I believe in freedom of speech,” Leguizamo said in a Yahoo News interview. “This is different … If he had said those things about any other ethnic group, he would not be on that SNL.”
Leguizamo told Yahoo News that he found it hurtful and insulting that SNL and NBC would have Trump on the show.
“I won’t watch SNL anymore,” Leguizamo said.
Leguizamo described Trump’s comments regarding Mexican people as “hate mongering.”
“I mean for him to go around saying that Mexican people are coming across the border are murders and rapists and all the horrible things he said is so dangerous,” Leguizamo said in the interview. “People have been hurt because of his words, because he incited. And he said, ‘well, my followers are very passionate,’ which is also his lack of sympathy and empathy is ridiculous.”
This week, protesters have rallied outside of NBC’s 30 Rockefeller Center headquarters, calling for the network to dump Trump’s appearance.
A group of prominent Hispanic movie stars, directors, scientists and academics wrote an open letter to NBC and SNL producer Lorne Michaels, voicing their opposition to NBC’s decision to allow Trump to host. They posted the letter on the website of Univision, rival to NBC’s Spanish-language Telemundo network.
Felix Sanchez, chairman and co-founder of the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts, wrote an op-ed on CNN.com last month opposing Trump’s appearance.
Some politicians have also criticized NBC for allowing Trump to host the show.
In an interview with CNN’s Brooke Baldwin on Tuesday, Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez called Trump’s scheduled appearance on SNL “an affront” to Latinos because of the “negative things” he has said. She said his comments are “endangering Latinos.”
Yet Minnesota Senator Al Franken, a former SNL cast member, struck a more positive tone. He said he expects Trump to do well on the show.
“I think it’ll be an entertaining show,” Franken said of Trump’s upcoming appearance Tuesday during an interview with CNN’s Ashleigh Banfield.
