Why did Sarah Whittle leave Smosh? Reasons for leaving explained

Sarah Whittle leaving Smosh came as a surprise for fans. She formally announced her departure from the American sketch comedy YouTube channel two days ago (3 May), with follow-up posts on Instagram and Twitter. So, why did Sarah Whittle leave Smosh?

Why did Sarah Whittle leave Smosh?

On a special episode of the SmoshCast two days ago (3 May), the Smosh team announced Sarah Whittle’s departure.

In an accompanying Instagram post, Whittle described the moment as “bittersweet”.

She also said that she had cried “A LOT”.

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Shortly before her Instagram post, she pre-warned fans of a “long sappy post”, via Twitter.

Why did she leave? 

In her Instagram post (above), Whittle mentions “life decisions” coming at times “when you feel like you’re not ready”.

But fans will have to listen to the podcast to get the real lowdown on why Sarah Whittle is leaving Smosh.

Fundamentally, however, she is “focusing [her] energy on [her] own journey outside of Los Angeles”. 

So it appears that geography played a part in her decision to leave the group.

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The Roast of Sarah

In Try Not To Laugh episode 69, The Roast of Sarah, the Smosh team give her a farewell roast.

While the SmoshCast episode explores some of the reasons for her leaving Smosh in more detail, the Roast alleviates some of the sadness it has caused.

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A particularly ardent fan of Sarah Whittle’s has created “Selfies for Sarah”, to support her as she leaves Smosh.

For how long was she part of the group?

Smosh first laid roots in 2002, when creator Anthony Padilla made “smosh.com”. 

Originally, it hosted flash animations. Ian Hecox soon joined him, and they began to post videos in the autumn of 2005.

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According to her LinkedIn, Sarah Whittle’s Smosh journey began in February 2019, when she joined as Director of Social Media.

A year later, she became the Director of Unscripted Content. She is leaving after two years and three months with Smosh.

Bruno Cooke

Bruno Cooke has been a freelance journalist since 2019, primarily with GRV Media. He was an early contributor to The Focus, and has written for HITC, Groundviews and the Sheffield University newspaper – he earned his MA in Global Journalism there in 2021. He’s the Spoken Word Poetry Editor for The Friday Poem, and self-published his debut novel Reveries in 2019, which his mum called both a “fine read” and “excellent Christmas present”. Bruno has lived in China, Sri Lanka and the Philippines and likes, among other things: bicycle touring, black and white Japanese films, pub quizzes, fermentation and baklava. In 2023, Bruno will set off with his partner on a round-the-world cycle.