Live from New York, it's ... a whole new "Saturday Night Live" cast? Yes, it looks like after that historic 50th season of the long-running sketch-comedy series, the powers that be (akaLorne Michaels) are making some big casting changes over at Studio 8H.
Firstly, several longtime members of the "SNL" cast will reportedly not be returning to the late-night series when season 51 premieres this fall, kicking off on NBC and Peacock on Saturday, October 4 at 11:30 pm ET. Heidi Gardner, who joined as a main cast member in season 43 back in 2017, will depart the program after eight seasons. Michael Longfellow and Devon Walker will also join her in the cast exodus, after three seasons each.
Walker announced his "break-up" from “SNL” on Instagram on August 25, writing: “Me and the show did three years together, and sometimes it was really cool. Sometimes it was toxic as hell. But we did what we made the most of what it was, even amidst all of the dysfunction. We made a f***ed up lil family.”
Emil Wakim similarly posted about his own departure to his Instagram — the comic was a featured player on "Saturday Night Live" for one season.
“I won’t be returning to SNL next year. It was a gut punch of a call to get but I’m so grateful for my time there,” Wakim wrote in his announcement. “Every time I scanned into the building I would think how insane it is to get to work there. It was the most terrifying, thrilling, and rewarding experience of my life and I will miss it dearly and all the brilliant people that work there that made it feel like a home.”
That leaves a wide-open gap for new talents, which will include freshly announced cast additions including Veronika Slowikowska, Jeremy Culhane, Kam Patterson and Tommy Brennan, who are all joining season 51 as featured players.
Ben Marshall — who "SNL" fans already know as a member of Please Don't Destroy, the comedy trio behind Digital Shorts like "Lizzo Has Writer's Block," "Three Sad Virgins" and "Calling Angie" — has also been upped to featured-player status after five seasons with the show. Sadly, that means the PDD dudes are being split up, with Martin Herlihy remaining on staff as a writer and John Higgins leaving the show altogether.
There's no word yet about the future fates of the remaining "SNL" cast members, which include longtime "Weekend Update" anchors Michael Che and Colin Jost, as well as Mikey Day, Andrew Dismukes, Chloe Fineman, Marcello Hernandez, Ego Nwodim, Ashley Padilla Sarah Sherman, Jane Wickline, Bowen Yang and Kenan Thompson, the latter of whom holds the record as the longest-serving "Saturday Night Live" cast member in history, entering his 23rd season of the show this fall.
Tom's Guide will keep you updated on all things related to "Saturday Night Live" season 51, including more casting shake-ups, host and musical guest announcements, and more.
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