Country music superstar Morgan Wallen appeared anxious to leave Studio 8H on Saturday, storming off the set of “Saturday Night Live” before the credits finished rolling.
Episodes of “SNL” end with the entire cast and guest stars standing on the main stage of the studio and waving to the audience. The moments, called “goodnights,” rarely show much more than cast members chatting with each other and celebrities. When the time came for Wallen to join in the tradition, he whispered something in host Mikey Madison’s ear and crossed in front of the cameras to exit the stage.
A post to Instagram later in the evening washed away any ambiguity about how Wallen was feeling. In a shot that likely got left in Robert Altman’s scratch pad for being too on-the-nose, the Nashville star wrote “Get me to God’s country” over an image of his private jet.
Wallen has a contentious history with the program, having been disinvited from the series during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The former “Voice” contestant was meant to perform in October 2020 but was booted after he was seen partying in an Alabama bar sans mask. He did eventually play on the show that December, taking part in a sketch where a future version of himself warned him about his bad behavior.
Those career hiccups appeared to be on the top of Wallen’s mind on Saturday, when he dropped by the show to hype his upcoming album, “I’m The Problem.” He performed the title track in front of a set made to look like a deranged detective’s office, with red string connecting tour posters and other memorabilia from Wallen’s career.
Outside of “SNL,” Wallen has waded through several controversies. He’s been arrested multiple times in Nashville for disorderly conduct, most recently in April of last year. In that incident, Wallen threw a chair from the rooftop of fellow country singer Eric Church’s bar. Wallen pled guilty to reckless endangerment in December and was sentenced to two years probation.
Beyond legal cases, Wallen nearly derailed his career in 2021 when he was captured on video saying racial slurs. He was briefly dropped by his label and uninvited from country music awards shows. After a few months in the wilderness, however, Wallen carried on being, arguably, the biggest name in the entire genre.
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