Morgan Wallen refused to appear in a sketch on “Saturday Night Live” this weekend, prompting Joe Jonas to step in at the last minute and come to the rescue, a source tells Page Six exclusively.
“[Morgan] was asked but declined, so they got Joe instead,” the insider says.
We hear the “Whiskey Glasses” singer, 31, was “not super friendly” on set.
“They had hopes he would do the pre-tape and perhaps more, but no joy,” the source claims.
We’re told Wallen “did what he was asked” by performing as the musical guest, but that was the extent of his involvement.
“He did the same thing for dress [rehearsal], i.e. walking off; he was done,” the insider shares, referring to the now-viral moment that Wallen abruptly exited the stage during the episode’s closing credits.
The sketch in question featured “SNL” cast members Ego Nwodim, Chloe Fineman, Bowen Yang and Sarah Sherman, as well as Saturday’s guest host, Mikey Madison, singing about the absurdity of standing in lines in New York City.
The song, dubbed “Big Dumb Line,” included a cameo from the Jonas Brothers member, 35, who urged the others to “believe in yourself” and “believe in the line.”
“You deserve this viral Greek yogurt or to try Lisa Rinna’s wine,” he sang. “So don’t give up. The rewards will be splendid. Did Amelia Earhart give up? I’m not sure how that ended. But she wants you to…”
The chorus of the song then picked up with the cast singing, “Wait in a big, fat line.”
It is unclear why Wallen turned down the opportunity, and his rep did not immediately respond to Page Six’s request for comment. We also reached out to Jonas’ rep.
A spokesperson for the NBC sketch-comedy series declined to comment.
The controversial country music singer made headlines this weekend for leaving the stage as credits rolled instead of mingling with the cast, as musical guests and hosts have customarily done in the past.
After giving Madison, 26, a one-armed hug, he ignored the comedians onstage and walked down the aisle and out of view from the cameras.
He also seemingly skipped the afterparty, as he boarded a private jet early Sunday morning, leading fans to question whether Wallen had any beef with some of the actors on set.
A source told TMZ that Wallen did not mean anything by his swift escape and had “entered and exited the studio the same way … during rehearsal and camera blocking all week leading up to the live show.”
“He routinely headed that way when he thought it was time to go,” the insider claimed.
Despite the gaffe, NBC sources confirmed there was “no bad blood” between show creators and Wallen and that he would be welcome back as a musical guest in the future.
“Saturday Night Live” airs Saturdays at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBC.
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