“Saturday Night Live” will return this weekend for its 51st season. Bad Bunny, fresh off the announcement that he will headline the Super Bowl halftime show, is set to host, and Doja Cat is the musical guest.
The previous season of “S.N.L.,” its highly anticipated 50th, was among the show’s most celebrated, with increased viewership and a star-studded anniversary special.
Whether that audience enthusiasm will endure is to be seen, but here’s what we do know about Season 51 ahead of Saturday’s episode.
Cast Shake-Up
In August, Lorne Michaels, the show’s creator, hinted that an overhaul was looming. And five cast members departed ahead of the new season: Heidi Gardner, a veteran of eight seasons; Ego Nwodim, a veteran of seven seasons; Michael Longfellow and Devon Walker, who both joined for Season 48; and Emil Wakim, who had just one season on the program.
Five new performers will be added in their place: Tommy Brennan, Jeremy Culhane, Ben Marshall, Kam Patterson and Veronika Slowikowska.
Marshall is new to the official cast but has already been a steady presence on the show, appearing in digital shorts as a member of the comedy trio Please Don’t Destroy, along with John Higgins and Martin Herlihy. But in September, a day after “S.N.L.” announced Marshall’s addition to the cast, Higgins announced that the group would stop making shorts for the NBC sketch show.
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The post ‘S.N.L.’ Season 51: What to Know Before the Premiere appeared first on New York Times.
