Saturday Night Live is stacking the cast with five new comedians after the shocking exit of cast members Heidi Gardner, Michael Longfellow, Emil Wakim, and Devon Walker.
Tommy Brennan, Jeremy Culhane, Ben Marshall, Kam Patterson and Veronika Slowikowska have been added as featured players to the cast ahead of Season 51, which will premiere on NBC later this fall.
This will mark Marshall’s first official year as a cast member after joining Saturday Night Live in 2021 as a writer. He has also appeared on camera in sketches as part of the comedy trio “Please Don’t Destroy,” featuring John Higgins and Martin Herlihy. Season 51 will mark his fifth season on the NBC show.
Variety reports Higgins has also exited Saturday Night Live to pursue other acting projects, while Herlihy will be staying on as a writer. The outlet notes the trio will continue working together on projects outside of SNL in addition to the tour they are currently on.
The news suggests SNL will be getting reinvigorated with the new wave of comedy, as the new featured players hail from Dropout TV, the independent comedy streaming platform, and popular shows like the podcast Kill Tony or the Hulu comedy What We Do In The Shadows.
Brennan is a stand-up comedian who recently made his debut on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon.
Marshall and Brennan are joined by Patterson, a comedian who regularly appears on the live comedy podcast Kill Tony. He will also soon make an appearance in Kevin Hart’s upcoming Netflix comedy 72 Hours, which also features SNL star Marcello Hernandez.
Slowikowska is an actress and sketch comedian who has appeared in Tires, What We Do In The Shadows, Poker Face and more.
Culhane is a regular on Dropout TV who is known for his viral social media videos.
Saturday Night Live creator Lorne Michaels confirmed the cast would get a major shake-up ahead of Season 51. But it still came as a shock for many when it was announced who will be exiting the show.
Longfellow addressed the news of his exit with a statement on social media, making it clear that it was not his decision to leave the show.
“Will not be returning for a 4th season at SNL. Wish I was but, so it goes. It was the best three years of my life so far. I feel nothing but gratitude for the experience and everyone there. Lorne, you gave me the greatest job in the world and changed my life. You even put my mom on TV. Thank you doesnt begin to cover it, but thank you,” he wrote, adding, “I’ll miss it all, but I’ll miss the friends I made and seeing them every day the most.”
Saturday Night Live will return with new episodes Oct. 4 on NBC and Peacock.