History of Saturday Night Live (2010–2015)

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History of Saturday Night Live
1975–1980
seasons 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
1980–1985
seasons 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
1985–1990
seasons 11, 12, 13, 14, 15
1990–1995
seasons 16, 17, 18, 19, 20
1995–2000
seasons 21, 22, 23, 24, 25
2000–2005
seasons 26, 27, 28, 29, 30
2005–2010
seasons 31, 32, 33, 34, 35
2010–2015
seasons 36, 37, 38, 39, 40
2015–2020
seasons 41, 42, 43, 44, 45
2020–present
seasons 46, 47, 48, 49
Weekend Update

Saturday Night Live is an American sketch comedy series created and produced by Lorne Michaels for most of the show's run. The show has aired on NBC since 1975.

2010–2011 season[edit]

Main article: Saturday Night Live (season 36)

The 2010–11 season of Saturday Night Live began September 25, 2010 with host Amy Poehler and musical guest Katy Perry. Before the start of the new season, four new cast members were added to fill the gap left behind by Will Forte (who quit the show after eight years)[1] and Jenny Slate (who was fired after her first season on the show).[2] The new hires were improv comedians Paul Brittain and Vanessa Bayer, former MADtv and Groundlings member Taran Killam, and stand-up comic and impressionist Jay Pharoah.[2] Killam became the second actor to have been a cast member on both MADtv and SNL, the first being Jeff Richards who joined SNL in 2001 and left in early 2004. Abby Elliott and Bobby Moynihan were promoted to repertory players. Second-year cast member Nasim Pedrad stayed a featured player for this season.

Former cast member Poehler became the fourth female former cast member of SNL to return as a host, the third to have worked under Lorne Michaels, and the second one to have been a Weekend Update anchor.[3]

Cast[edit]

bold denotes Weekend Update anchor

Notes[edit]

  • With this season, Jeff Bridges surpassed Sigourney Weaver's record for longest gap between hosting appearances (Weaver's gap was 24 years between her first appearance in 1986 and her second appearance in 2010;[4] Bridges has a 27-year gap between his first appearance in 1983 and his second appearance in 2010).[5]

2011–2012 season[edit]

Main article: Saturday Night Live (season 37)

The 2011–12 season of Saturday Night Live premiered on September 24, 2011, with host Alec Baldwin and musical guest Radiohead. Featured player Kate McKinnon, a former cast member on Logo's The Big Gay Sketch Show, joined the cast midseason as a feature player, making her first appearance in the April episode hosted by Sofia Vergara. McKinnon is SNL's first openly gay female cast member, the third lesbian cast member hired (after Denny Dillon in 1980, though she wasn't open when she was on the show,[6] and Danitra Vance in 1985, though Vance's sexual orientation was not known until she died in 1994), the second cast member hired to be openly gay (after Terry Sweeney, who like Danitra Vance, was also from the 1985–86 season), and the second white lesbian cast member hired (after Denny Dillon).[7] McKinnon is also the first cast member from The Big Gay Sketch Show to be a cast member on SNL (and the second cast member from The Big Gay Sketch Show to cross over to a mainstream sketch comedy show. Erica Ash, from MADtv's 14th and final season on FOX, is the first).

On May 12, 2013, NBC announced that Weekend Update anchor Seth Meyers (who had been a cast member since 2001, and Weekend Update anchor since 2006), would be the new host of Late Night in 2014, succeeding Jimmy Fallon as he takes over as the new host of The Tonight Show.[8] Meyers remained as Update anchor until February 2014 to host his incarnation of Late Night.[9]

This was the final season for Kristen Wiig,[10] Andy Samberg,[11] and Abby Elliott.[12]

Cast[edit]

bold denotes Weekend Update anchor

2012–2013 season[edit]

Main article: Saturday Night Live (season 38)

The 2012–13 season of Saturday Night Live premiered on September 15, 2012, with host Seth MacFarlane and musical guest Frank Ocean. New cast members were Chicago improvisers Aidy Bryant, Tim Robinson, and Cecily Strong.[13] Vanessa Bayer, Taran Killam, and Jay Pharaoh were promoted to repertory.

This would be the final season for longtime cast members Fred Armisen,[14] Bill Hader,[15] and Jason Sudeikis.[16]

Cast[edit]

bold indicates Weekend Update anchor

2013–2014 season[edit]

Main article: Saturday Night Live (season 39)

The 2013–14 season of Saturday Night Live premiered on September 28, 2013, with host Tina Fey and musical guest Arcade Fire. Six new cast members were hired, including Upright Citizens Brigade performers Beck Bennett, John Milhiser, Kyle Mooney, and Noël Wells, stand-up comedian Brooks Wheelan (who originally was hired as a writer until Tim Robinson was chosen instead), and four-year writer Michael Patrick O'Brien (credited as "Mike O'Brien"). This was the highest number of cast members hired since season 21 (1995–96) and, with the addition of Sasheer Zamata, this season has the most female cast members with seven, surpassing the number of six in the 1991–92 (season 17) cast.[17]

Nasim Pedrad announced her departure from the show in June 2014 in order to work on the Lorne Michaels-produced sitcom Mulaney.[18] Milhiser, Wells, and Wheelan were all let go after this season, and O'Brien returned to the writers' room for the next season.

Diversity concerns[edit]

The show came under criticism when the show announced the six new cast members, all of whom are white.[19][20] Jay Pharaoh voiced SNL needed to improve its hiring practices and cited several African-American comics he felt would be a great addition to the cast.[21][22] Kenan Thompson also gave an interview in which he said he would no longer be impersonating Black female characters[23] and was asked about the cast's lack of Black women.[24] Thompson suggested the absence of Black female cast members was due to producers not finding such comedians who were "ready".[24] His comments sparked backlash from critics who had long felt the show was lacking in diversity,[25] particularly with regard to Black women.[a] SNL addressed the controversy in the fifth episode hosted by Kerry Washington.[26] That December, the show held auditions for a Black female cast member, with Amber Ruffin, Nicole Byer, and Tiffany Haddish being among those to audition.[27] Some journalists expressed skepticism about the show's commitment to diversify, opining that the move was a publicity stunt.[28] In January 2014, Sasheer Zamata of the Upright Citizens Brigade was hired as a featured player.[29] The following season, stand-up comedian Leslie Jones joined the cast.

Cast[edit]

bold denotes Weekend Update anchors

2014–2015 season[edit]

Main article: Saturday Night Live (season 40)

The 2014–15 season of Saturday Night Live premiered on September 27, 2014, with host Chris Pratt and musical guest Ariana Grande. Comedian Leslie Jones joined the show as a featured player.

Former writer Michael Che, returned to SNL to co-anchor Weekend Update, replacing Cecily Strong. Che had initially left the show at the end of last season to be a correspondent on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.[30]

Cast[edit]

bold indicates Weekend Update anchor

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ Up to that point, which was SNL's 38th year on the air, the series has only had four black female cast members: Yvonne Hudson (1980-81), Danitra Vance (1985-86), Ellen Cleghorne (1991-95) and Maya Rudolph (2000-2007).[24]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Barrett, Annie (August 26, 2010). "'Saturday Night Live': Will Forte reportedly leaving on amicable terms. 'Vagisil!'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
  2. ^ a b Itzkoff, Dave (September 7, 2010). "'Saturday Night Live' Cast Adds Four and Loses One More". New York Times. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
  3. ^ Ryan, Mike (September 26, 2010). "Introducing the SNL Scorecard: The Good, Bad and Ugly of Saturday Night". Movieline. Archived from the original on April 19, 2019. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
  4. ^ Adalian, Josef (December 30, 2009). "'Avatar' Alert: Sigourney Weaver Hosting 'SNL'". The Wrap. Archived from the original on May 31, 2012. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
  5. ^ Ross, Robyn (November 18, 2010). "Roberto De Niro, Paul Rudd, Jeff Bridges to Host Saturday Night Live in December". TV Guide. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
  6. ^ Hoglund, Andy (August 12, 2020). "Denny Dillon Reflects on Saturday Night Live's Infamous 6th Season". Vulture. Archived from the original on March 22, 2022.
  7. ^ Woodtke, Jordyn (March 30, 2012). "'SNL' Casts First Openly Gay Female". Hollywood Life. Archived from the original on July 27, 2013. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
  8. ^ Levin, Gary (May 12, 2013). "Seth Meyers named NBC's 'Late Night' talk host". USA Today. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
  9. ^ Busis, Hillary (May 16, 2013). "Seth Meyers will return to 'SNL' this fall, leave for 'Late Night' in 2014". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
  10. ^ Labrecque, Jeff (December 4, 2012). "'Saturday Night Live': Kristen Wiig's enchanting last dance". EW.com. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  11. ^ Buchanan, Kyle (June 1, 2012). "Andy Samberg Is Now Officially Leaving Saturday Night Live". Vulture. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  12. ^ Lyons, Margaret (August 15, 2012). "Abby Elliott Out at SNL". Vulture. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  13. ^ "'Saturday Night Live' Adds Three to Cast". NBC Entertainment. September 12, 2012. Archived from the original on February 16, 2015. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  14. ^ Czajkowski, Elise (June 28, 2013). "Talking to Fred Armisen About 'SNL', 'Portlandia', And Being Part of A Comedy Collective". Vulture. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  15. ^ Itzkoff, Dave (May 14, 2013). "Bill Hader to Leave 'Saturday Night Live'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  16. ^ Levin, Gary (July 24, 2013). "Jason Sudeikis confirms 'SNL' exit". USA TODAY. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  17. ^ Abramovitch, Seth (September 11, 2013). "Cheat Sheet: Get to Know the 5 New Faces of 'SNL'". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
  18. ^ Strecker, Erin (June 9, 2014). "Nasim Pedrad implies that she's leaving 'Saturday Night Live'". EW.com. Archived from the original on June 10, 2014. Retrieved June 13, 2014.
  19. ^ Gupta, Prachi (September 26, 2013). "Saturday Night Live's race problem". Salon.com. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  20. ^ Czajkowski, Elise (September 26, 2013). "Why SNL Should Work On Its Lack of Diversity". Vulture. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  21. ^ Evans, Bradford (October 2, 2010). "Jay Pharoah on 'SNL's Diversity Issue: 'They Need to Pay Attention'". Vulture. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  22. ^ Browne, Rembert (October 3, 2013). "Jay Pharaoh Speaks Out About Saturday Night Live's Diversity Problem". Grantland. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  23. ^ Weisman, Aly (October 16, 2013). "'SNL's' Kenan Thompson Refuses To Dress In Drag Until The Show Hires A Black Woman". Business Insider. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  24. ^ a b c Gennis, Sadie (October 14, 2013). "Kenan Thompson Blames SNL's Diversity Issue on Lack of Talented Black Comediennes". Archived from the original on October 15, 2013.
  25. ^ Beltran, Mary (2013). "SNL's 'Fauxbama' Debate: Facing Off over Millennial (Mixed-)Racial Impersonation". Saturday Night Live & American TV. Indiana University Press. pp. 191–209. ISBN 978-0253010902.
  26. ^ Rothman, Lily (October 17, 2013). "Kerry Washington, Kenan Thompson and Black Women on 'SNL'". Time. ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  27. ^ Evans, Bradford (December 12, 2013). "'SNL' Held an Audition of Exclusively Black Female Performers Last Week". Vulture. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  28. ^ Wallenstein, Andrew (January 7, 2014). "Diversity Done Wrong: How 'SNL' Mishandled Casting a Black Woman". Variety. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  29. ^ "Saturday Night Live Adds Sasheer Zamata, First Black Female Cast Member in Six Years". TVLine. January 6, 2014. Archived from the original on October 27, 2021. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  30. ^ Feldman, Josh (April 28, 2014). "SNL Writer Michael Che Joins Daily Show as Newest Correspondent". Huffington Post. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
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