Scarlett Johansson Loses Box Office Crown — and SNL Turns It Into a Colin Jost Punchline

Scarlett Johansson’s long-standing box office dominance has officially come to an end — and Saturday Night Live wasted no time turning the milestone into a joke at her husband’s expense.

During the Jan. 17 edition of Weekend Update on Saturday Night Live, anchor Colin Jost delivered the news that Zoe Saldaña has surpassed Scarlett Johansson to become the highest-grossing actress of all time at the global box office.

“Zoe Saldaña — who stars in the new Avatar movie — has surpassed Scarlett Johansson to become the highest-grossing actress of all time,” Jost said as a bar graph comparing the two actresses appeared onscreen.

Then came the twist.

“Okay, well let’s see what happens if you include the box office from Scarlett’s husband’s movies,” Jost continued. A comedic sound effect played as Johansson’s total suddenly dropped from $15.4 billion to $15.1 billion. The punchline landed immediately — even Jost wasn’t ready for it.

“It went down?!” he exclaimed, laughing as the studio audience reacted.

Zoe Saldaña Takes the Top Spot

The joke followed real industry news: Saldaña recently dethroned Johansson, who had previously held the record for highest-grossing actor of all time. Thanks largely to the continued success of Avatar: Fire and Ash — along with the first two films in Avatar — Saldaña’s films have earned approximately $16.95 billion worldwide.

Johansson now sits in second place with an estimated $16.44 billion in global box office revenue.

Franchise Power Drives Both Careers

Marvel Studios plays a major role in both actresses’ totals. Saldaña has appeared in five Marvel Cinematic Universe films as Gamora, while Johansson starred in nine MCU projects as Natasha Romanoff, including Black Widow.

Saldaña’s edge comes from her additional franchise success outside Marvel, notably her starring roles in the Avatar series and the Star Trek films.

Johansson, meanwhile, has seen major box office wins beyond the MCU with titles such as Jurassic World Rebirth, The Jungle Book, Sing, and Lucy.

Colin Jost’s Box Office, by the Numbers

As for Jost, the Weekend Update joke was backed by real figures. According to The Numbers, his cumulative box office total stands at $488,489,123. That figure comes from films including Tom & Jerry (2021), Coming 2 America, Fly Me to the Moon — a Johansson-led project in which he made a cameo — and The Bad Guys 2.

While Johansson may have lost her box office crown, SNL proved once again that in the Jost-Johansson household, no statistic is safe from becoming a punchline.