Shane Gillis’ ex-girlfriend Grace Brassel fired back after the comedian used his “Saturday Night Live” monologue to joke about women’s clothing at the gym. Her response unfolded across several Instagram posts featuring pointed captions and workout content, as reported [1] by Fox News.
Brassel began by reposting a video of Dan Levy criticizing Gillis for what Levy called a “misogynistic” joke. She shared the clip to her Instagram Stories on Tuesday before writing, “ANYWAYS… y’all need anything from the store?”
She kept the apparent shade going with a gym selfie, according to the Big Lead. Brassel captioned that post, “Fitcheck!”
Brassel returned to Instagram on Wednesday with more material tied to the gym. She posted a video showing her workout routine and wrote across it, “Full Body Workout for Hoes.”
View this post on Instagram
The social media posts followed the end of Brassel and Gillis’ relationship. The pair confirmed that they were together in July 2024, then quietly separated about a year later.
Gillis, 38, hosted the NBC sketch comedy show on Saturday. During his monologue, he delivered a description of female gymgoers that quickly drew backlash.
“I haven’t been to the gym in so long, I didn’t realize women just dressed like whores now,” Gillis said.
He then defended the description, saying, “Look, I’m sorry there’s no other way to describe it. Have you seen it, I’ve seen it.”
Gillis continued by focusing on women’s workout shorts. “The shorts, have you seen the shorts? Those neon, they’re like artificial bait color.”
“The wrinkles go around the cheeks, and all combine at the butthole,” he added.
So I hear Shane Gillis pissed a lot of people off with his “whores” joke? https://t.co/dd2SCLtxYs
— Joe Rogan Podcast News (@joeroganhq) October 14, 2026 [3]
The joke was subsequently criticized by Jenna Bush Hager, Kathy Griffin, Levy and several former “SNL” cast members. Their objections focused on Gillis’ language and his commentary about women’s appearances.
“This perpetuates what is happening in our culture where people are commenting on women’s looks ad nauseam … and it’s not OK,” Bush Hager said during Tuesday’s episode of “Today With Jenna & Sheinelle.”
Griffin also criticized Gillis while speaking exclusively with Page Six. She described him as part of a group of men from the “TikTok or podcast world” that “all look like they can’t get laid.”
“They all tell the same jokes … and they tell these jokes about women that are from like 100 years ago, like women should be in the kitchen and shut up and all this other stuff,” Griffin said.
Former “SNL” cast member Cecily Strong responded in a fashion similar to Brassel’s approach. Strong posted an image of herself heading to a workout while drawing attention to her own gym clothes.
“On my way to Pilates in my new slutty ass orange shoes and rainbow socks,” Strong wrote on her Instagram Story Wednesday, showing off her gym attire. “Might sell sex on the way, not sure,” she added.
Gillis previously joined the “SNL” cast in 2019, but he was fired five days later. Despite the criticism from Brassel, Strong, Bush Hager, Griffin, Levy, and other former cast members, Gillis has not responded to the scrutiny.