‘Saturday Night Live’ Set to Return With Pete Davidson as 1st Host of Season 49
Saturday Night Live is returning for its 49th season with Pete Davidson set to make his hosting debut during the first episode.
“SEASON 49 ????????,” the official SNL Instagram page wrote alongside two of the sketch comedy show’s iconic cork board lineup announcements on Wednesday, October 4. Davidson, 29, was listed as the host for the October 14 season 49 premiere while Ice Spice was named as the episode’s musical guest.
A subsequent photo announced that Bad Bunny will serve as both host and musical guest for the October 21 episode.
Davidson was previously slated to host SNL in May with musical guest Lil Uzi Vert, but the episode was canceled due to the Writers Guild of America strike. “SNL will air repeats until further notice,” NBC announced on May 2.
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Ahead of the cancellation, Davidson, who was an SNL cast member from 2014 to 2022, was prepared for the possibility that the show might not go on.
“It’s really funny, [SNL executive producer] Lorne [Michaels] told me a couple months ago [that I was hosting], but then, this week, as you know, the writers strike might happen,” Davidson said during an April appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. “So, I’ve been working on this for like two, three months, and they’re like, ‘Yeah, we’ll know Monday if it’s happening or not.’”
Although the WGA voted to end its five-month-long strike on September 26, SAG-AFTRA’s strike, which began in July, is ongoing. After SNL’s return was announced, SAG-AFTRA released a statement explaining why the show is allowed to continue.
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"SAG-AFTRA members appearing on Saturday Night Live either as hosts, guests, or cast members are working under the Network Code agreement, which is not a contract we are striking. They are not in violation of SAG-AFTRA strike rules, and we support them in fulfilling their contractual obligations,” the statement shared via the union’s website began.
The entire cast of SNL’s 48th season is returning for season 49. That means Michael Che, Mikey Day, Andrew Dismukes, Chloe Fineman, Heidi Gardner, Punkie Johnson, Colin Jost, Ego Nwodim, Kenan Thompson and Bowen Yang will all be back in action on October 14. James Austin Johnson and Sarah Sherman have also been promoted from featured players to repertory status for the upcoming season.
In addition to the familiar faces, one newcomer, Chloe Troast, will join the cast as a featured player. Troast has previously collaborated with SNL’s Please Don’t Destroy — the comedy group comprised of Ben Marshall, John Higgins and Martin Herlihy.
Season 49 of Saturday Night Live premieres on NBC Saturday, October 14, at 11:30 p.m. ET.
