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The 13 people who survived the Saturday Night Live summer 2025 cuts (Yes, Kenan Thompson is still there) and are coming back for season 51
Kenan Thompson, Bowen Yang, Chloe Fineman and more are headed back to SNL, while a Please Don't Destroy regular joins the core cast
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Though cast member shakeups are nothing new to Saturday Night Live, this summer did feel like a bit of a bloodbath, with four familiar faces leaving after the sketch comedy's landmark season 50. In case you missed the news, those four were Heidi Gardner, Michael Longfellow, Devon Walker, and Emil Wakim. Now, however, the bleeding seems to have stopped, as we can officially report the cast members set to return for Season 51.
(And even a couple of additions. Keep reading.)
The news from The Hollywood Reporter, in an article published September 8. According to THR, the folks returning to TV's longest-running comedy program are, in no particular order:
- Kenan Thompson
- Chloe Fineman
- Bowen Yang
- Ego Nwodim
- Mikey Day
- Michael Che
- Colin Jost
- Andrew Dismukes
- Marcello Hernandez
- James Austin Johnson
- Sarah Sherman
- Ashley Padilla
- Jane Wickline
As mentioned above, there will also be a couple of newbies joining for this season, whom we've listed below, again in no particular order:
- Tommy Brennan
- Jeremy Culhane
- Kam Patterson
- Veronika Slowikowska
Notably, there's one name in the THR article that is both new and familiar to regular viewers: that is, Ben Marshall. Though Marshall is officially listed as joining SNL as a new cast member for this upcoming season, the comedian has been regularly appearing on the show as part of the comedy troupe Please Don't Destroy, who contributed to the show via pre-recorded sketches. Marshall's PDD cohort John Higgins will be leaving SNL entirely, while the last member of the trio, Martin Herlihy, staying on as a writer. Please Don't Destroy sketches, reports THR, will no longer appear on the show.
Saturday Night Live season 51 debuts on NBC October 4.
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