Well, I thought the Saturday Night Live shakeup was pretty much over, but it turns out it wasn’t. Ahead of the show’s Season 51 premiere on the 2025 TV schedule, it’s been revealed that Ego Nwodim will not be returning after seven seasons on the show.
Her departure marks the second exit of a long-time cast member, as Heidi Gardner’s departure was announced last month. According toDeadline, it was Nwodim’s choice to leave, as she said:
The hardest part of a great party is knowing when to say goodnight. But after seven unforgettable seasons, I have decided to leave SNL. I am immensely grateful to Lorne for the opportunity, to my castmates, the writers, and the crew for their brilliance, support, and friendship. Week after week on that stage taught me more than I could have ever imagined, and I will carry those memories, and that laughter, with me always.
I know I’ll certainly remember her impact on SNLforever. Lisa from Temecula will always be an absolutely iconic moment in modern Saturday Night Livehistory, and I think the image of Nwodim reacting to the crowd during that “these men ain’t what?” Weekend Update moment last season will live in my mind rent-free.
Ego Nwodim’s departure marks the fifth cast exit this year. It started when Devon Walker announced he wouldn’t return after three years on the show. Michael Longfellow left after three seasons as well, and Emil Wakim, who was on one season, won’t be returning either. All three were relatively new cast members.
Heidi Gardner was on the show for eight seasons, while Ego Nwodim was there for seven, making them the longest-running cast members set to leave.
Meanwhile, the cast of Saturday Night Live’s 51st season has some new faces. Veronika Slowikowska, Kam Patterson, Jeremy Culhane, Tommy Brennan and Please Don’t Destroy’s Ben Marshall were all added to the ensemble. However, along with those additions, there were more exits behind the scenes, including John Higgins from PDD.
In terms of long-time cast members who will be back, Scarlett Johansson confirmed that her husband, Colin Jost, would return to SNL. Before Nwodim’s exit, it was also believed, per Deadline, that she would be back alongside Kenan Thompson, Michael Che, Mikey Day, Chloe Fineman, Marcello Hernández, James Austin Johnson, Andrew Dismukes, Sarah Sherman, Bowen Yang, Ashley Padilla and Jane Wickline. However, clearly, the exits weren’t over yet.
We’re now a little less than a month away from SNL’s Season 51 premiere on October 4. It will air on NBC at 11:30 p.m. ET, and you can stream it with a Peacock subscription. At the moment, we don’t know who the host and musical guests for the upcoming episodes will be. And with the surprise of Ego Nwodim’s exit, it will be interesting to see if there are any more cast shakeups in the lead-up to the show’s first episode of the season.
