'Saturday Night Live' Season 51 finale ends without cast departures, awaiting offseason changes

The host for Saturday Night Live's Season 51 conclusion, Will Ferrell, perfectly illustrates the usual path for a thriving SNL cast member: He dedicated seven seasons to the NBC late-night comedy programme before venturing into a successful Hollywood journey.

In recent years, things have shifted, with popular cast members remaining longer than the usual six or seven years, balancing SNL with other film and television pursuits.

Currently, there are six veterans who have remained on the show for six or more seasons: Colin Jost (13), Michael Che (12), Mikey Day (10), Chloe Fineman (7), Andrew Dismukes (6) alongside Kenan Thompson, who holds the record as the longest-serving SNL cast member with 23 years under his belt.

The Season 51 conclusion highlighted Day and standout featured performer Ashley Padilla, who took centre stage alongside Ferrell in three live sketches — with Day amusingly breaking character each time and pairing with Ferrell in a “Hormuz Jeff” pre-recorded skit that didn't make the cut. 

Among the long-standing members, Fineman and Dismukes had a couple of appearances, while Thompson surprisingly stayed in the background, only participating in a brief cameo in the School Musical sketch.

Jost, revisiting his portrayal of Pete Hegseth in the opening skit, and Che were met with an extended round of applause at the start of “Weekend Update,” causing Che to chuckle and Jost to comment, “Oh dear, goodness.” The studio audience seemed to either be showing their support for the veteran duo, acknowledging that any finale could be their last, or expressing their excitement for another Joke Swap (or perhaps both).

Jost and Che delivered a full-length Joke Swap, following a shorter version from the Christmas episode. It concluded with a prank joke from Che for Jost, culminating in a barber coming out to shave Jost’s head, which completely caught him off guard. They skipped a formal sign-off, only managing a regular, “See you next time.” (Jost went along with the joke and surprised his co-stars by joining the closing with a cap on.)

Differing from other years, there hasn't been much speculation about veteran SNL cast members planning to leave, with most, if not all, appearing open to continue.

As has been the case, decisions regarding cast changes will occur over the summer, with some possibly announced sooner. Similar to the previous year, there seems to be minimal internal discussion about potential departures. 

Last year, leader Lorne Michaels concentrated on celebrating SNL’s 50th anniversary throughout the season, culminating in two live specials in February. This year, his focus has been on launching Saturday Night Live UK.

Certain anticipated changes for the 16-member cast are expected, foremost being a promotion for Season 51 standout Padilla. Like Bowen Yang, she emerged as a true SNL star while still being a featured player. Typically, SNL cast members start as featured players for two years before being promoted if they stay on the show. Padilla, now in her second year, is set for a well-deserved promotion for Season 52. (Though not as clear-cut as Padilla, fellow second-year featured player Jane Wickline has also proven her worth, and if she continues, it would come with a main cast promotion.)

There is another anticipated change as the show is likely to add a Black female cast member next season, following the unexpected departure of veteran Ego Nwodim in September, which happened weeks before the October 4 premiere after the Season 51 cast was already finalised.

While SNL season finales no longer necessarily indicate departures, they might offer some clues. During the conclusion of the Season 50 finale, Bowen Yang's noticeable, heartfelt embraces with fellow castmates Sarah Sherman and Nwodim stood out. We were unaware then, but it turned out to be Yang's (and Nwodim’s) last season finale as SNL cast members. Yang departed in December after more than seven years, with over six as a performer.

The Season 51 finale did not have a conventional curtain call, and no cast member had the opportunity to share the usual hugs and conversations because, after Ferrell concluded his “thank you”s to McCartney and surprise guests Molly Shannon, Chad Smith, and Aziz Ansari, as well as Michaels and the cast for “an amazing season,” the camera followed McCartney as he moved to the adjacent stage for a bonus third, closing performance, with the cast swaying and clapping from the side.

McCartney's song choice, “Coming Up,” hinted at what's ahead for SNL in the upcoming months and served as a reminder of the last grand SNL season finale farewell for a longtime cast member when another British rock legend, Mick Jagger, performed “Ruby Tuesday” for departing Kristen Wiig in May 2012.