SNL Season 50 Cast Announcement: New Additions and Departures

SNL Season 50 Cast Announced

The highly anticipated cast for the 50th season of NBC’s beloved sketch comedy series, Saturday Night Live, has officially been unveiled. The new season will introduce emerging talents Ashley Padilla, Emil Wakim, and Jane Wickline as featured players, as announced by the network on Tuesday. Mark your calendars, as the season is set to premiere on September 28.

Notably absent from this season’s lineup is Chloe Troast, who joined the show as a featured player last year. In a heartfelt Instagram post on Monday, Troast revealed, “Unfortunately, I was not asked back to ‘S.N.L.’ this season. I wish I was going back to be with all the amazing friends I made there; it truly felt like home. But it wasn’t in the cards.”

Troast, who gained recognition for her portrayal of Mama Cass in 2023, expressed her disappointment in a manner that resonated with fans and fellow cast members alike.

Ashley Padilla joins the ranks of notable SNL alumni, having honed her skills with the acclaimed Los Angeles improv and sketch comedy troupe, the Groundlings. This past year, she also made an appearance in a final-season episode of HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm and featured in a revival episode of Night Court on NBC.

Emil Wakim, a Lebanese American comedian with roots in Indiana, made a splash in the late-night comedy scene when he debuted on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in 2022. That same year, he was honored as the New Face of Comedy at the prestigious Just for Laughs festival in Montreal, and has had the opportunity to open for renowned comics such as Roy Wood Jr., Nikki Glaser, Hasan Minhaj, and Neal Brennan.

Jane Wickline has gained popularity on TikTok, where she boasts nearly a million followers and regularly contributes to Stapleview, a live TikTok comedy show, showcasing her comedic talents to a broad audience.

Returning to the main cast this season are fan-favorites Michael Che, Mikey Day, Andrew Dismukes, Chloe Fineman, Heidi Gardner, James Austin Johnson, Colin Jost, Ego Nwodim, Sarah Sherman, Kenan Thompson, and Bowen Yang. Additionally, former featured players Marcello Hernández, Michael Longfellow, and Devon Walker will be elevated to the main cast following their participation in Season 48.

In other cast news, Punkie Johnson, who has been part of the show since 2020, confirmed her departure from S.N.L. for the upcoming season. Johnson was known for her portrayal of Vice President Kamala Harris, a role that has seen frequent appearances by former cast member Maya Rudolph, who originally starred on the show from 2000 to 2007. Rudolph has reprised the role of Harris multiple times, including ten notable appearances through 2021, and is expected to return as Harris campaigns for the White House as the Democratic candidate.

Finally, Molly Kearney, who made history as the show’s first nonbinary cast member, announced via Instagram in August that they would not be returning after two successful seasons. Kearney expressed gratitude for the opportunity, stating, “It was such a dream come true. So incredibly grateful for this period in my life.”