In case you hadn’t heard, Saturday Night time Stay simply celebrated its fiftieth anniversary season. It was full of tributes, retrospectives, and that three-hour, reside primetime particular. After the festivities concluded, the present turned its consideration to the long run. There have been rumblings that longtime EP Lorne Michaels would retire, and even that the present itself may finish. Come on, did anybody truly imagine that? However one dialogue that appeared much more seemingly was that of a solid turnover.
Saturday Night time Stay recurrently rotates solid members to maintain the present recent. Some seasons bid farewell to only a couple, whereas others kick out many extra. It was believed that SNL 50 would function a big solid exodus on the finish for a number of causes. Many who have been holding on till the fiftieth is likely to be keen to go away. The solid itself was additionally fairly giant, and several other stars had been on for greater than a decade. However the solid for Season 51 has been revealed, and it is surprisingly… intact. Some energy gamers left, however to not the extent that was teased. To high all of it off, the solid is definitely rising subsequent season. So, why did not the broadly teased solid shakeup pan out?
Who Truly Ended up Leaving ‘SNL’?
It goes with out saying that Saturday Night time Stay is an American establishment. It has been a staple of popular culture since 1975. Every year usually brings some change to the solid to maintain issues recent. And the fiftieth was arguably the largest season but. As much as and through the season, Michaels emphasised that his focus was on the previous and the current. He wished to have a good time the present’s historical past and the half-century milestone earlier than trying to the long run. However that did not cease the wheels of hypothesis from turning.
All through the season, followers shaped theories that longtime solid members, together with Kenan Thompson, Mikey Day, Bowen Yang, and Weekend Replace co-hosts Colin Jost and Michael Che, have been on their method out. There wasn’t a lot arduous proof on the time, however the present’s historical past of dropping long-serving stars to greater and higher issues contributed.
Jost and Che have been probably the most mentioned potential departures. The 2 have been serving collectively for a decade, longer than every other Weekend Replace anchors. Some followers love their banter and roast comedy, whereas others thought it was time for a recent perspective behind the desk. Michaels once more was hesitant to substantiate something whereas the season was ongoing.
In an August 2025 interview with Puck, Michaels lastly confirmed that solid modifications can be coming forward of Season 51. The next week, 4 departures have been introduced. First-year participant Emil Wakim, third-year stars Devon Walker and Michael Longfellow, and eight-year veteran Heidi Gardner all revealed their exits. And if rumors are to be believed, none left of their very own accord (Web page Six). Longfellow’s departure was notably important, as he was broadly seen because the frontrunner to take over Weekend Replace. Quickly after, 5 new featured gamers have been introduced. We’re no math buffs, however 5 is bigger than 4. The long-rumored post-50 exodus has truly led to a bigger solid.
4 departures are important, but it surely’s nothing near the massacre that some have been anticipating. In 2022, a whopping eight solid members bid farewell within the forty seventh season finale. That included real SNL A-listers like Kate McKinnon, Pete Davidson, and Aidy Bryant. Of the Season 50 departures, solely Heidi Gardner could be thought-about in that high tier of SNL legends. Each different heavy-hitter, together with Jost and Che, will likely be again subsequent season.
‘SNL’ Is Job Safety in a Altering Ecosystem
The complete Season 51 solid will encompass repertory gamers Michael Che, Mikey Day, Andrew Dismukes, Chloe Fineman, Marcello Hernandez, James Austin Johnson, Colin Jost, Ego Nwodim, Sarah Sherman, Kenan Thompson, and Bowen Yang, second-year faces Ashley Padilla and Jane Wickline, and new names Tommy Brennan, Jeremy Culhane, Kam Patterson, Veronika Slowikowska, and Please Do not Destroy author Ben Marshall. That is a whopping 18 solid members, simply shy of the file 21 set within the forty seventh season.
5 new solid members is the largest single addition since Season 39, when the present was attempting to fill the void left by the exits of Fred Armisen, Invoice Hader, and Jason Sudeikis. That many new faces would have made sense if extra long-running stars had left. The solid may have been trimmed, permitting extra time for the brand new class to shine. However whenever you actually get right down to it, hanging round at SNL makes logistical sense.
Up to now, it was pure for an SNL star to leap to a Hollywood A-lister after leaving. Suppose Adam Sandler, Will Ferrell, and Eddie Murphy. However the media ecosystem has modified. Movies are not confined to the large display screen, because of the rise of streaming companies. It is arduous to face out when anybody could be an instantaneous celeb. SNL is not the Hollywood launching pad it as soon as was. It was the one place to go in your comedy and political satire. Now all of us have instantaneous entry on our telephones. Newer solid members wrestle to face out when they’re separated from the present. SNL is job safety, and at the present time, it simply is smart to maintain the job you may have.
Followers can relaxation assured that the majority the SNL favorites will return this fall. That features Kenan Thompson, who’s been doing sketch comedy longer than most trendy SNL followers have been alive. The brand new season of Saturday Night time Stay launches October 4 at 11:30 pm on NBC and Peacock.
Saturday Night time Stay
- Launch Date
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October 11, 1975
- Community
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NBC
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Andrew Dismukes
Self (archive footage)
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Chloe Fineman
Self / Margaret Jo McCullin / Varied
