Saturday Night Live season 51
NBC show season
The fifty-first season of the American sketch comedy late night television program Saturday Night Live premiered on October 4, 2025 on NBC and Peacock during the 2025–26 television season, with host Bad Bunny and musical guest Doja Cat, and concluded on May 16, 2026 with host Will Ferrell and musical guest Paul McCartney. In the season, the series reached a milestone: airing its 1,000th episode, on January 31, 2026, with host Alexander Skarsgård and musical guest Cardi B.
Cast
On August 22, 2025, prior to the start of the season, creator/executive producer Lorne Michaels confirmed that changes to the cast were guaranteed and that announcements about any changes would be made in the following weeks.
Beginning on August 25, a series of departures was announced, starting with Devon Walker (who had been let go from the show after three seasons - since 2022), that was followed later by featured player Emil Wakim (who was let go after one season), Michael Longfellow (also let go after three seasons - since 2022), Heidi Gardner (who had been let go after eight seasons - since 2017), and Ego Nwodim (who voluntarily left after seven seasons - since 2018).
On September 2, 2025, five new featured cast members were announced: stand-up comic Tommy Brennan, Upright Citizens Brigade performer and Dropout TV regular Jeremy Culhane, stand-up comic and Kill Tony podcast regular Kam Patterson, social media comedian and actress Veronika Slowikowska, and Ben Marshall, SNL staff writer and member of the comedy trio and former SNL collaborators, Please Don't Destroy. PDD's time on SNL ended after four seasons (2021–2025) as John Higgins departed the show while Martin Herlihy remained in a writing-only capacity.
Michaels also confirmed that James Austin Johnson would return, noting that the show would rely on Johnson's Donald Trump impersonation for the foreseeable future.
Ashley Padilla and Jane Wickline, both of whom were hired for season 50, remained as featured players.
This was the final season for longtime cast member Bowen Yang (who started on the writing staff in 2018 and had been a cast member since 2019), as he left the show following the Christmas episode hosted by his Wicked co-star, Ariana Grande, on December 20, 2025. He is the sixth cast member to leave the show in 2025, following the former cast members listed above. On July 16, 2026, it was announced that this would also be the final season for longtime cast member Chloe Fineman, who had joined the show the same season as Bowen Yang in 2019.
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