“Saturday Night Live” lost five beloved cast members ahead of its 51st season premiere on Saturday. Ego Nwodim, Heidi Gardner, Devon Walker, Emil Wakim and Michael Longfellow all announced that they were leaving the long-running late night sketch comedy series.
At the Emmy Awards in September, SNL boss Lorne Michaels explained the departures.
“The show has always brought people in from new, different ages and different generations, and it has to, it’s how it revives itself,” he told “Entertainment Tonight” host Nischelle Turner on the red carpet. “It’s always hard when people leave, but there’s a time for that. And our audiences always stay relatively young, more so now with TikTok.”
“Change is good,” he continued. “And the people we’re bringing in, I’m really excited about.”
And so, five new cast members — who range in age from 26 to 33 — will be joining the storied players Saturday on the 51st season premiere. Bad Bunny is set to host, with Doja Cat as the musical guest.
