Jon Stewart was among a handful of comedians who Hasan Minhaj spoke to after all this went down, with others including Mike Birbiglia, Ray Youssef and John Mulaney. Here’s what he had to say about his phone call with Stewart:

Minhaj shared that his other comedian friends and mentors, including Ramy Youssef, Mike Birbiglia, John Mulaney, and even former Daily Show host Jon Stewart, reached out to him in the aftermath. He recalled spending hours on the phone with them. “I remember Jon called, and he said, ‘Why the f--- are they doing this? And who does this benefit?'"

Hasan Minhaj has confirmed that he was was going to be named The Daily Show‘s new full-time host last year, but the controversy about his stand-up comedy act — namely, embellished tales told therein — cost him the job.

Hasan Minhaj is looking back at the gig that almost was.