History of Saturday Night Live

The long-running American late-night sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live (SNL) first premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, and its fifty-first and most recent season premiered on October 4, 2025. Created by Lorne Michaels, who is the original and current showrunner, its history has been shaped by its large and constantly-changing cast of performers, as well as changes in its writing staff from year to year. It has played a prominent role in American popular culture and television since its inception, and changing attitudes towards cultural diversity have been evident particularly in its recent history.

Initially called NBC's Saturday Night and envisioned as something closer to a traditional variety show, the program was developed as a replacement for reruns of The Tonight Show and quickly became a staple of late-night television. The early years of SNL were dominated by its initial cast of performers, which became known as the "Not Ready for Prime Time Players", and included such performers as Chevy Chase, John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, and Gilda Radner. The cast members soon became famous during the first season, and the show became immediately known for its mix of satirical humor, political commentary, and celebrity impersonations, quickly developing a cult following.

Michaels left the program in 1980; the program was executive produced by associate producer Jean Doumanian for a year, then Dick Ebersol for several years, before Michaels returned in 1985. After an unstable 1985–1986 season, he introduced a new cast featuring performers like Phil Hartman and Dana Carvey, stabilising the show's production and helping to restore its popularity. He also reintroduced political satire of figures such as George H. W. Bush, an element of the series that had been deprioritised during the Ebersol era. Subsequent decades saw the rise of cast members like Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, and Kate McKinnon, helping to keep the show relevant to new generations of viewers.