Since its debut, “Saturday Night Live” has played a major role in American media culture as one of the primary sources of popular touchstones including digital shorts, catchphrases, memes, and iconic recurring characters. As the longest-running sketch comedy show in American television history with nearly 1,000 episodes across 51 seasons, it has served as a launching pad for some of the biggest names in comedy. Fresh off two episodes (as of Oct. 14), some of the cast shared their thoughts on the new season with The Pace Press, if the energy behind the scenes is any indication, audiences are in for something special.
This season’s cast received a significant overhaul- welcoming five new cast members to Studio 8H: Tommy Brennan, Jeremy Culhane, Ben Marshall, Kam Patterson and Veronika Slowikowska. While the departed cast members’ talent and energy will undoubtedly be missed, the new featured players have shown their expressive charisma and talent in the past two episodes alone.
The cold open is almost a guaranteed laugh, with actors and former cast members making cameos to portray the ever-growing roster of colorful political figures. The writers continue to demonstrate unwavering commitment to political satire, even amid tensions with the current administration over its criticism of late-night television. In recent evenings, James Austin Johnson is now tasked with delivering the portrayal of President Donald Trump. “You know I try not to [adlib any of my work], because it’s only one shot, and I’m talking for several minutes. But I do adlib sometimes, and it wouldn’t feel like Trump if I didn’t go off script a little bit.” Johnson says.
Most notably, on Oct. 11, the show opened with host Amy Poehler featuring Tina Fey, reprising their chemistry back to the show. The duo, who famously portrayed Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton in one of “SNL’s” most celebrated cold opens, returned to play Attorney General Pam Bondi and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem.
Poehler’s hosting marked the 50th anniversary of “Saturday Night Live,” which originally aired as “NBC’s Saturday Night” on Oct. 11, 1975. Her jovial energy made her the perfect choice to honor this milestone. Her devotion to her craft has proved again why she is one of the great alumni. Current featured player Ashley Padilla had nothing but praise for the legendary comedian.”She was perfect and amazing and she just brought joy to set,” Padilla said. “I mean what else could you expect from [Poehler]?”As a cast member from 2001 to 2008, Poehler has achieved tremendous success after her time on the show, making her return all the more meaningful.
The monologue section allows the host to introduce the show while promoting their work and talent. Most impactfully, the season premiere featured Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, more popularly known as Bad Bunny, delivering an uplifting opening monologue. Following the announcement of his upcoming Super Bowl halftime show, Bad Bunny concluded his monologue with an inspiring message in Spanish. “It’s more than an achievement for myself, it’s an achievement for all of us…It shows our footprint, and our contribution to this country, that no one will ever be able to take away or erase.” Afterwards, he teased: “If you didn’t understand what I just said, you have four months to learn.” Bad Bunny’s episode in particular heavily celebrated Latin American culture. His episode show closed with a parody of “El Chavo del Ocho,” a Mexican television sitcom series during the 70s, paying homage to one of the largest shows in Latin American History.
On Oct. 4, Weekend Update featured a new featured player, Kam Patterson. Patterson got his start into the comedy scene as a regular on “Kill Tony,” a comedic podcast variety show. He is known for playing into alternative dark humor and his expressive personality. Asked to reflect on his three weeks at “SNL” using only three words, Patterson enthusiastically replied, “I would say, amazing, amazing, amazing.”
In the most recent update, the show brought some of its most popular “anchors,” Poehler, Fey, and in a surprise appearance- Seth Meyers. They came back to the Weekend Update desk, where they competed in a “joke-off” with the current anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che.
Marcello Hernández has become one of the show’s beloved personalities, and it’s easy to see why. Hernandez’s natural magnetism brings an infectious energy to every sketch—especially in the recurring bit “The Couple You Can’t Believe Are Together” alongside featured player Jane Wickline. Comedy is Hernandez’s calling: when asked how he would spend his Saturday nights if he weren’t pursuing comedy, Hernandez paused, before saying, “I don’t know…that’s a good question…maybe dancing, I imagine.”
One of the sketches from the Oct. 11 show presented a team of different lawyers competing for clients, using silly gimmicks. Johnson noted that finding sketch ideas is about staying observant. “Inspiration is really everywhere. It is more just recognizing, ‘Hey, this could actually be a sketch,'” he said. “I was watching a lot of lawyer ads this summer, and so I talked to Andrew (Dismukes- fellow cast member), and we both agreed they talk an awful lot about their combined experience…so then that escalated.”
In recent seasons, fans have noticed the production team’s elaborate efforts to create large decorative sets that capture each musical guest’s aesthetic. Recent examples include Doja Cat lounging on a giant rose and Role Model performing in a rustic barn. During his performance, Role Model continued his concert tradition for the song “Sally, When the Wine Runs Out” by inviting a guest “Sally” to dance on stage—in this case, iconic experimental pop artist Charli XCX.
In the show’s final moments, the cast expresses their gratitude to the audience and acknowledges the endless hard work and collaboration vital to bringing each production to life. Following a triumphant season celebrating five decades of laughter and nostalgia, this season has set high expectations for the incredible sketches to come. “Saturday Night Live” airs on NBC on Saturdays at 11:30 p.m. and streams on Peacock.
