SNL sets its cast for the new season with stars Chloe Fineman, Bowen Yang and Kenan Thompson returning
As Saturday Night Live approaches season 51, we’ve begun to see the exit of several cast members, including some high-profile players. It was recently announced that Heidi Gardner, who has been on SNL for eight years, will not return to the show this upcoming season. While speaking with Craig Ferguson earlier this year, Gardner admitted to sketch fatigue after being on the show for so long. “I will say the only thing that I’ve started to feel a little bit is just sketch fatigue, or idea fatigue,” she said. “At this point, after doing Groundlings and SNL for so long, I’m like, ‘I’ve written a lot of sketches.’ It does happen some weeks where I’m like ‘I do not have an idea for a sketch, a game, or a character.’ Luckily we have amazing writers at the show that will be like, ‘But I have an idea for you.’ That’s the only thing that has gotten a little tough.“
According to The Hollywood Reporter, amid cast overhauls, the next season of not-ready-for-primetime-players have now been finalized. Previous stars Chloe Fineman, Bowen Yang and Kenan Thompson are due to continue their tenure on the show. Other previous cast members who will be returning include Ego Nwodim, Mikey Day and Michael Che also return to host the Weekend Update segment alongside Colin Jost. They will be joined by Andrew Dismukes, Marcello Hernandez, James Austin Johnson, Sarah Sherman, Ashley Padilla, and Jane Wickline. The newer names who have made the cast include Ben Marshall, Tommy Brennan, Jeremy Culhane, Kam Patterson and Veronika Slowikowska. However, Marshall has already appeared previously as a member of Please Don’t Destroy, who have taken up the mantle of the Lonely Island’s brand of pre-filmed sketches.
Please Don’t Destroy will reportedly not have sketches featured on the show, with John Higgins leaving, but Martin Herlihy will continue as a writer. However, the Please Don’t Destroy troupe will continue to collaborate for projects outside of SNL. Other SNL cast members who have recently departed include Devon Walker, Emil Wakim, and Michael Longfellow. In a statement on Instagram, Walker said, “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.“
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