Colin Jost and Pete Davidson made headlines when the comedians purchased a Staten Island Ferry last year. While the duo are both Staten Island natives, many questioned why they wanted to buy such an expensive boat -- especially considering that it was no longer in use. Well, their plans have evolved over the last year and a half as they have endured trials and tribulations of the ferry purchase, and learned that they may have bit off more than they could chew.
Now, I have a comprehensive idea about what the situation is with the massive piece of transportation, and how they hope to restore it as a symbol of New York City. Maybe. Hopefully.
January 2022: The Staten Island Ferry Was Purchased And Plans Were Revealed
To begin, the New York Times announced Jost and Davidson purchased a decommissioned Staten Island Ferry together for $280,100 at auction, alongside broker Paul Italia. The New York natives bought the boat from New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services. The ferry at the time was already over 60 years old and was no longer in service, due to many engine problems. It will be unlikely to ever set sail, and several restorations were needed on the vessel.
At the time, the SNL stars had big plans for the boat. As Staten Island natives, the vessel had personal significance for both Davidson and Jost, and the two stated intentions to restore the ferry as a historical piece of New York City. They planned to permanently keep it docked and turn it into an entertainment venue. In a public statement asserting their intentions, they said:
The idea is to turn the space into a live entertainment event space, with comedy, music, art, et cetera. We’re in the early stages, but everybody involved had the same ambition — not to see this thing go to the scrapyard.
An SNL Sketch Referenced The Ferry Purchase
Talk about the ferry purchase started circulating online, and SNL found a meta way to satirize the story. An ongoing "Weekend Update" sketch called "Guy Who Just Bought A Boat" continuously makes fun of Wall Street finance types who purchase boats as a piece of social clout.
They used the sketch to tease cast members Davidson and Jost on their silly ferry purchase. The two comedians tease themselves, and at one point Davidson noted, “We bought a ferry, the windowless van of the sea."
Colin Jost Revealed The Titanic 2 Name
Almost nine months went by without much news on the famous ferry purchase, until the longest-serving Weekend Update anchor went on Late Night with Seth Meyers in September 2022. The actor was asked how the ferry plans were going, and the Jost seemed to admit that the two comics were a bit in over their heads. He lamented the boat purchase was "idiotic"; though as a true comedian, he also found a lot of humor in the situation.
He revealed that he and Davidson had renamed the boat Titanic 2, which had become a real problem for the pair when trying to get the vessel insured. He said:
This is why idiots shouldn’t be allowed to do things. Pete and I bought this boat and there’s so many immediate decisions you have to make and one of them is like you have to create a financial entity to deal with this boat. And so we’re on a call and I’m just like, ‘Alright well how about Titanic 2?’ And so everyone on the call is like ‘Oh that’s great, let’s do that!’ So that goes into a contract. Right? Suddenly we’re looking for insurance, which we have to buy because it’s a giant deathtrap boat! So you have to get insurance, and then every insurance company’s like ‘It’s called Titanic 2?
Jost's Wife Scarlett Johansson Gave Her Two Cents
Scarlett Johansson, who married Jost in 2020, weighed in on the ferry purchase when she was a guest on Live with Kelly and Mark. The Marvel alum seemed just as surprised about the purchase as we were, telling the story of how she found out her husband was buying a ferry with his friend. She detailed:
One day he was like reading the news or whatever and [Colin] was like ‘Oh that’s funny they’re gonna auction off the Staten Island Ferry. Okay that’s cool I guess it was like scrap metal or I don’t know why anybody would buy that…
Well clearly someone would buy that, her husband. She continued her story, revealing her own shock about finding out about the purchase.
He was like ‘so that would be a fun thing to buy’ and I was like ‘I mean I guess if you were you know, if you have the space for it’ and so a few days go by and I see he’s making all these secretive phone calls and he keeps saying it’s ‘ferry stuff’ and I was like ‘what is going on?’ And then I get a text message that says ‘we bought a ferry’ and I was…I was… I was… I guess…surprised… And I was like ‘What are we doing with this!'
She was taken aback by the decision, and also seemed to have all the questions anyone would if their husband told them they were buying a massive boat. However, Jost did have plans for the ferry and its future as an entertainment space. Johansson was eventually filled in on his dreams for his new ferry, saying:
Well there are plans for it to become like a whole big fun space, you can all rent it for bar mitzvahs if you want!
Colin Jost Rectified Pete Davidson's Statement Claiming They Were High When They Bought The Boat
When asked for a boat update, Davidson offered a statement hinting at buyers remorse. He told ET that he and Jost didn't think the massive purchase through, claiming they were both high when they bought the massive New York vessel. Jost contradicted this statement on Instagram. His caption asserted that the Weekend Update was dead sober when he made the decision. He also used the opportunity to announce his Ferry Money stand-up tour, hilariously suggesting that he would use funds from performing on the ferry restoration. You can see his post below:
June 2023: Pete Davidson Provided An Update On Titanic 2
Finally, after many off-handed comments and joking about the funny name, Davidson finally provided an update about what's really going on with the massive boat. The King of Staten Island star was a guest on Seth Meyers' Family Trips podcast, where the host asked him about is Davidson's post-SNL plans. Apparently, the comedy duo are still very much moving forward, and have a full five-year plan for the renovation. He said:
So, we just got all the plans built. We had them do one of those computer generated, you know, show-you-what-it-could-be type of thing. And now we're out to a few people and it seems like it's all going well, but it's definitely five years away
He went on to give even more details about the future entertainment venue, and what their plan is for changing seasons in the east coast state. They seem to be working out the logistics, but have an idea of how they are going to handle the weather, as well as what the final product would contain. He detailed:
We wanna be able to dock it from April to September, maybe October, in New York and it will be like a restaurant. There will be a concert venue. There will be a movie theater, upstairs like, sort of, restaurant area. And then there's hotels in it. So, we'll have a couple of those. And then in the winter tug it to Miami.
Meyers spoke for everyone when he expressed how surprised he was that the duo had become so involved and proactive with the ferry plans. Davidson quickly replied the whole thing was out of necessity, and he had no idea what he was getting himself into. He also joked about how much the thing was costing him, saying:
Yeah we have to 'cause we're in the hole! Colin called me and he's like, 'Hey, can you hop on this call about the ferry?' And I was like, 'We’re still doing that thing?!' He's like, 'Yeah. This is pretty serious.' And it is. I had no idea. I saw a link and sent a deposit and now I’m stuck with a f***ing boat. It’s really funny, dude.
While things got off to a rocky start, it seems like Jost and Davidson finally have a comprehensive plan about what they hope to do with their Staten Island Ferry. While their ideas seemed unlikely, considering how many logistics were involved, the two comedians now have direction. It may take years before the grand opening of this entertainment venue, but I personally can't wait to see how it turns out. Maybe. Hopefully.
While you wait to book your stay the Titanic 2, you can check out Colin Jost and Pete Davidson performing together in past episodes of Saturday Night Live, which is streaming with a Peacock subscription. You can also check out Davidson's cinematic love letter to his hometown, The King of Staten Island, which is also streaming on the service.
