Chevy Chase Terry Sweeney SNL Controversy 2026: A Documentary Reopens Old Wounds

He offered an apology, but he was furious that he had to give it. SNL alum Terry Sweeney isn't holding back against Chevy Chase as a new CNN documentary, 'I’m Chevy Chase and You’re Not,' revisits a toxic chapter from the 1980s. The premiere on January 1, 2026, has reignited a decades-long feud over alleged AIDS jokes and workplace harassment.

The Chevy Chase Terry Sweeney SNL Controversy Re-examined

In the film, director Marina Zenovich confronts Chase with claims that he suggested a sketch mocking the AIDS epidemic during the 1985-86 season. Sweeney, the show's first openly gay cast member, alleged that Chase wanted him to be weighed weekly on air to check for the disease. While Chase reportedly apologized later in Sweeney's dressing room, Sweeney noted he seemed more resentful of the requirement to apologize than remorseful for the act.

Chase's response in the documentary has only fanned the flames. "My memory is that [Sweeney] is lying," Chase stated, adding that he wasn't even sure if Sweeney was still alive. This dismissal prompted a sharp retort from Sweeney, who told The Hollywood Reporter that Chase was simply "making himself look more like the ass he is."

Lorne Michaels and the Culture of 'Chevy being Chevy'

The documentary also features SNL creator Lorne Michaels, who offered a more defensive perspective. Michaels suggested that Chase's behavior was a product of a specific era of comedy where cast members said terrible things just to get a laugh. However, Sweeney dismissed recent attempts to humanize Chase's behavior through his history of childhood abuse, calling him "rotten" regardless of his past.