Saturday Night Live boss Lorne Michaels has addressed the recent casting shake-up at the sketch comedy show.
Ego Nwodim and Heidi Gardner are among the high-profile departures from the show, which has also added five new comedians.
Speaking to Entertainment Tonight at the Emmys, Michaels said: “The show has always brought people in from different ages and different generations and it’s how it revives itself.
“It’s always hard when people leave, but there’s a time for that and our audience has always stayed relatively young, and more so now with TikTok.”
He added: “Change is good. The people we’re bringing in, I’m really excited about.”
Asked in an August interview with Puck if he was going to “shake things up” for season 51 after there weren't any major cast departures following the show’s 50th season finale, Michaels, 80, said “yes.”
Shortly after that interview, casting news for Season 51 began rolling out.
The five new cast arrivals include Ben Marshall, who was previously a part of sketch video troupe Please Don’t Destroy, and social media star Veronika Slowikowska.
Marshall joined SNL in 2021 along with John Higgins and Martin Herlihy. They regularly made videos and appeared in sketches on the show. Marshall now officially joins the cast, and Herlihy is believed to be staying on as a writer. Higgins has departed.
Best known for her internet sketches posted on Instagram, Slowikowska’s acting credits include Shane Gillis’ Netflix comedy series Tires and FX’s What We Do in the Shadows.
The other new arrivals are Tommy Brennan, Jeremy Culhane, and Kam Patterson.
Brennan is best-known for the web series and podcast Roommates-In-Law, while Culhane rose to fame posting sketches on Instagram and TikTok before landing acting credits on show such as The Sex Lives of College Girls, Make Some Noise, and American Vandal.
Patterson’s stand up career has quickly gained traction thanks to his work on Tony Hinchcliffe’s Kill Tony podcast. He’s also slated to appear in the forthcoming Kevin Hart film 72 Hours.
Along with Nwodim and Gardner, the other departures are Devon Walker, Emil Wakim and Michael Longfellow.
In a statement announcing her decision to leave, Nwodim said: “The hardest part of a great party is knowing when to say goodnight. But after seven unforgettable seasons, I have decided to leave SNL.
“I am immensely grateful to Lorne for the opportunity, to my castmates, the writers, and the crew for their brilliance, support, and friendship. Week after week on that stage taught me more than I could have ever imagined, and I will carry those memories, and that laughter, with me always.”
She made headlines earlier this year when the audience answered her stand-up persona, Miss Eggy’s question, with an expletive.
SNL Season 51 premieres on October 4 at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBC, and will be available to stream on Peacock the next day.
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