The ‘Saturday Night Live’ season 50 cast.Photo:Mary Ellen Matthews/NBC
Mary Ellen Matthews/NBC
It’s been 50 years ofSaturday Night Live!
WhenLorne Michaelscreated the show in 1975, he never expected it to become the cultural phenomenon that it has today, yet “people have decided somehow that it’s important,” he toldThe Hollywood Reporterin September 2024.
“This was the first time in a while where I could just look at the show and go, ‘This is what’s happening’ — and we just had to make changes, so we did and we’re excited about the new people because they’re people we felt really belonged atSNL,” he said.
From their big breaks to their personal lives, here’s everything to know about the season 50 cast ofSaturday Night Live.
Kenan Thompson
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Kenan Thompsonis the longest-tenured cast member inSNLhistory, with season 50 marking his 22nd season. He became a featured player in 2003 and was promoted to repertory in 2005. He was also the first regular cast member born after the show’s 1975 premiere.
Thompson was well-known before joiningSNL. As a teen, he starred in the ’90s Nickelodeon sketch comedy seriesAll Thatand the sitcomKenan & Kel. He also appeared in the cult moviesGood BurgerandFat Albert. Thompson has since starred in dozens of other projects, including his own sitcom,Kenan, which ran for two seasons.
As for his personal life, the comedian has two children,Georgia MarieandGianna Michelle, withChristina Evangeline, whom he married in 2011. The actor filed for divorce from Evangeline in June 2022.
At the 2022 Emmys, whichhe hosted, Thompson told PEOPLE andEntertainment WeeklythatSNLstill feels “new” to him all these years later. “It’s exciting like that. It’sreally exciting to find new, funny things, especially when you’re further down your tenure.”
Colin Jost
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One of the longest-tenured current cast members inSNLhistory isColin Jost, who was hired as a writer in 2005. He was then a co-head writer from 2012 to 2015, and again from 2017 to 2022. While he doesn’t appear in many sketches, he has been the co-host ofWeekend Updatesince 2014.
Since 2017, Jost has been in a relationship with actressScarlett Johansson. The pairmet on the setofSNLin 2006 when she was hosting, but did not become romantically linked until years later. Theygot married in 2020and welcomed their son,Cosmo, in 2021.
The couple have since appeared onSNLtogether on several occasions. When Johansson hosted the show in 2019, she called Jost “the love of my life” and joked about her status as one of the highest-paid actresses.
“It’s so great to be back hostingSNLfor the sixth time,” she said in her opening monologue. “The sixth time is even more exciting than the fifth because you’re not worried anymore. The show is bad, what are they gonna do, fire my fiancé? Oh no, what will we do without his paycheck?”
Michael Che
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Michael Chebegan working onSNLas a writer in 2013. He then became the co-anchor ofWeekend Updatein 2014 and has occasionally appeared in other sketches. From 2017 to 2022, Che was a co-head writer of the show alongside hisWeekend Updateco-host Jost.
Outside ofSNL, Che is a stand-up comedian and a former correspondent onThe Daily Show. He has also appeared in the moviesLyleandTop Five. In 2018, he co-hosted the 70thEmmy Awardswith Jost.
While Che hasfaced some backlashfor jokes he’s writtenonSNL, he’s not going anywhere — at least not yet. In March 2022, he clarified thathe wasn’t leaving the seriesafter joking about it at a comedy show.
Plus, he toldThe Hollywood Reporterin September 2024 that he has stayed at the show all these years out of “love,” adding that “it’s a weird thing because you get moments where you love it so much that it drives you crazy and you want to be as far away from it as possible.”
Mikey Day
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Mikey DayjoinedSNLin 2013 as a writer and became a featured cast member in 2016, before being promoted to repertory player in 2018.
In 2016, Day co-wrote the hitDavid S. Pumpkinssketch starringTom Hanks, spurring several parodies and a dedicated Halloween special of the character. In a 2017 interview withUproxx, Day said of the sketch, “I was definitely happy that it became a big deal and it wasn’t necessarily topical or tied to anything. It was just kind of its own thing.”
Day has a son, born in 2012, with his partner,Paula Christensen. He previously dated hisKath & KimcostarSelma Blair.
Chloe Fineman
Fineman is known for hercelebrity impressions, mimicking the likes ofDrew Barrymore,Jennifer CoolidgeandTimothée Chalamet.
For PEOPLE’s The Beautiful Issue in 2022, Fineman opened up herdaily routinesand managing her late-night shifts onSNL.
“I hate the taste of water. If I could just live on cold brew, I would,” the actor shared. “I am an early girl, and so it’s really a challenge. I found out I was born at 6:45 in the morning, and maybe I’m making this up, but I get up at that time no matter what, even if I’ve been up really late. It’s definitely a challenge to be on thisSNLschedule, hence my cold brew addiction.”
Andrew Dismukes
FilmMagic/FilmMagic
Like many cast members,Andrew DismukesjoinedSNLas a writer first. Shortly after he graduated from theUniversity of Texas at Austin, Dismukes was asked to audition for the long-running show after he was seen performing at the “New Faces” showcase at Montreal’s Just for Laughs Comedy Festival. He joined the writing staff in 2017, became a featured cast member in 2020 and was promoted to repertory player in season 48.
In January 2023, Dismukes appeared onLate Night with Seth Meyersand spoke about his faux pas during his firstSNLtable read. “I did have nerves, but I pulled a move that would make people think I was the most confident kid in the world where I showed up to my very first table read in flip flops,” Dismukes said. “Which, apparently, not allowed. Not supposed to do that.”
He said his manager called the next day and told him, “Can’t do that. Gotta wear shoes, can’t have your feet out.”
Heidi Gardner
Momodu Mansaray/WireImage
Gardner opened up to the outlet about the types of characters she enjoys playing on the show. “I like playing a range of emotions,” she toldInStyle. “In my own life, I think I’ve always been a bit of a people pleaser. Maybe the world around me was a little chaotic, so I had to keep my cool. And so I really like playing characters that don’t care and just let loose in public with no shame, like cry, yell, roll their eyes.”
As for her personal life, Gardner married Marvel comic book writer Zeb Wells in 2010, though the pairannounced their splitin 2024.
Ego Nwodim
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One of Nwodim’s most popular impersonations onSNLis her portrayal ofDionne Warwick. In 2021, Nwodim opened up to PEOPLE about the music legend making aguest appearancein the reoccurring sketch,TheDionne Warwick Talk Show.
“Oh my God! … I kept having to pinch myself. I couldn’t believe she was really there,” Nwodim said. “And then I was like, ‘That’s who I look like,’ but she’s here. It was incredible and so much fun. She’s so gracious and wonderful.”
Bowen Yang
Evans Vestal Ward/NBC/Getty
Bowen Yangwas hired as a writer forSNLin 2018 and became a featured player the following year. In 2021, he was promoted to repertory player. He is the show’sfirst Asian cast member.
For PEOPLE’s Sexiest Man Alive issue in 2021, Yang opened up aboutthe famousSNLafterparties, which he described as both “wholesome and debaucherous.” He recalled one party in particular, “I drank a bourbon when I went to [host]Kim Kardashian’s secret afterparty. I turned around andKhloé Kardashianlooked me in the eyes and said, ‘What are you drinking? That’s so sad. Drink champs with me.’ I was like, ‘Whatever you say, Khloé Kardashian.’ "
Sarah Sherman
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Sarah Shermanmade her debut as a featured player in 2021 before becoming repertory in 2023. Also known as Sarah Squirm, the stand-up comic became known for her body horror comedy in Chicago, according toChicago Reader. She was asked to audition forSNLafter performing at the Just for Laughs festival in Montreal. She’s adapted her surrealistic and “gross-out” humor forSNL— as evidenced in season 47’s sketch “Meatballs.”
James Austin Johnson
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“If no one has ever told a woman that’s six months pregnant that she has to move to New York in the middle of winter, you should do it,” he joked. “You should give it a try. Because that is one of my favorite conversations I have ever had.”
Marcello Hernandez
Marcello Hernandez made his on-air debut in October 2022 as a featured player, and was promoted to full-time cast two years later. Originally from Miami, the comedian found popularity on TikTok before being cast and made Just for Laughs' New Faces of Comedy list in 2022.
Growing up, Hernandez was more into soccer than comedy, as he toldHola!in 2022. He shared that a teacher and his mother encouraged him to try out theater, and he eventually gave in.
“In my senior year of high school, I finally went to an event which was a big monologue theater-type event and I did well, and I was like, ‘Oh, maybe I’m good at this,’ " he said. “Then in college, I tried stand-up comedy for the first time, even though I had been a fan, and I was hooked.”
Michael Longfellow
Michael Longfellow made his debut as anSNLfeatured player in 2022, and became a full-time cast member in 2024. Longfellow is a stand-up comedian and was featured on the NBC reality competition seriesBring the Funnybefore being cast. In 2017, he was selected as a TBS “Comic to Watch” at the New York Comedy Festival and was consequently featured onConan.
Before he graduated fromArizona State University, Longfellow was interviewed for a story on the school’s website, in which he talked about his love of comedy and his decision to study English.
“I did comedy for the first time as a freshman and immediately realized it was the only thing I really wanted to do,” he said. “I knew if I was going to have to go to college, a degree that dealt with words and language would best suit my interests.”
Devon Walker
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Along with Hernandez, Kearney and Longfellow,Devon Walkerbecame a featured player in 2022. In 2024, he was promoted to a full-time cast member.
Before joining the show, the comedian was part of Comedy Central’s “Up Next” showcase in 2017. He’s also worked as a writer for the showsBig MouthandEverything’s Trash.
In 2022, Walker was featured onVulture’s “Comedians You Should and Will Know” list. When the outlet asked if there was a moment from his childhood that led to him becoming a comic, he answered, “I don’t know if there’s anything from my childhood that explains it … but I know as an adult I’ve had a bunch of jobs, and the only one I’ve ever been good at is being funny.”
Emil Wakim
Emil Wakim performs on ‘The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon’ on April 5, 2022.Todd Owyoung/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty
Todd Owyoung/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty
Stand-up comic Emil Wakim joined theSNLcast as a featured player in 2024 shortly after being featured onVulture’s “Comedians You Should and Will Know” list that year. In an interview with theoutletthat September, Wakim shared that his career “highlight” was doing stand-up onThe Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.
“I was new to New York and desperately needed a credit or something to feel validated and be able to get booked on things. It’s still crazy to me that I survived it. Just the anticipation leading up to the taping was crazy,” he said.
Wakim added, jokingly, “It was also huge for my parents, because it was finally a thing where all their friends and co-workers knew what it was, so it gave them a lot of closure that they could stop wincing when they tried to explain to their friends that aJFLaudition was a big deal or whatever.”
Jane Wickline
Jane Wickline during Weekend Update on ‘Saturday Night Live’ on Dec. 14, 2024.Will Heath/NBC via Getty
Will Heath/NBC via Getty
In 2024, Jane Wickline joined theSNLcrew as a featured player for the show’s 50th anniversary season. Before appearing onSNL, Wickline amassed a following on TikTok, where she contributed to the app’s live comedy showStapleview.
In an October 2024 interview onSaturday Night Live’s officialYouTube channel, Wickline shared that she was in Times Square when she received the news of her casting. “It was amazing. I started violently sobbing on the phone and then I called my mom also,” the comedian said.
Ashley Padilla
Ashley Padilla attends The American Museum of Natural History’s 2024 Museum Gala on Dec. 5, 2024, in New York City.Slaven Vlasic/Getty
Ashley Padilla joined Wakim and Wickline in making herSNLdebut as a featured player in 2024. Although she is from the Bay Area, Padilla moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in comedy thanks to an extra push from her mom, per herGroundlingsbio.
Prior to joining the show, she was a member of the Groundlings, like many of her castmates. In addition to improv, Padilla has made waves in stand-up comedy through appearances on NBC’sNight Courtreboot andCurb Your Enthusiasm.
source: people.com
