‘Saturday Night Live’ Bids Adieu to Four Favorite Cast Members

The season finale of Saturday Night Live featured goodbyes from popular longstanding cast members Pete Davidson, Kate McKinnon, Aidy Bryant, and Kyle Mooney.

Rumors circulated the week prior about longtime cast members leaving, especially given Davidson’s recent absences from the show. Variety reported the news the day before the finale aired.  

Season 47 featured the largest cast in the storied history, prompting a significant exodus. 

Kate McKinnon is perhaps best known for playing Hillary Clinton opposite Alec Baldwin’s Donald Trump during the 2016 election season. She’s been a cast member on Saturday Night Live since 2012, playing other political characters such as Jeff Sessions, Theresa May, and Angela Merkel.  

She said goodbye in the cold open skit by bringing back a favorite character, alien abductee Colleen Rafferty. She boards a spacecraft with aliens, saying farewell to “earth” as it departs. Aptly, McKinnon opened the show with one final “Live from New York, it’s Saturday night” as a cast member. 

Fan-favorite Pete Davidson closed out his Saturday Night Live career with a heartfelt discussion with Colin Jost during the Weekend Update sketch. He joked about the SNL family taking a chance on a young local comedian from Staten Island. 

On the season finale, Davidson took jabs at controversies in his career, including his engagement to Ariana Grande and his argument with the congressman and veteran Ben Crenshaw.

Davison shared a statement via SNL and King of Staten Island writer Dave Sirus’ Instagram hours prior to his final show:

Jerrod sent [the video] to me last night and it made me super emotional in the best way. In the video, I had just gotten back from doing my very first update and sketch. It’s crazy to think that today I’ll be doing my last one. When I got the show I was 20 years old and I had no idea what I was doing. I still don’t but especially back then. I wasn’t really a sketch performer, I was just a stand up. I knew I could never keep up or go toe-to-toe with a Kenan Thompson or a Kate McKinnon, so I was super scared at figuring out what I could possibly bring to or do for such a historic, respected show and platform. I figured since I’m a stand up, I’ll just try my stand up and personal bits on Weekend Update as myself and I’m so glad I did. I got to share so much with this audience and literally grow up in front of your eyes. We were together through the good and the bad, the happiest and the darkest of times. I owe Lorne Michaels and everyone at SNL my life. I’m so grateful and I wouldn’t be here without them. I appreciate you guys always having my back and sticking up for me even when that wasn’t the popular opinion. Thank you for always believing in me and sticking by my side even when it seemed comical. Thank you for teaching me life values, how to grow up and for giving me memories that will last a lifetime. SNL is my home. I’m so happy and sad about tonight’s show. For so many reasons I can’t explain. Can’t wait to be back next year in a Mulaney musical number. — Resident young person Pete Davidson

In 2014, Davidson became the youngest cast member to join the long-running comedy show. He’s made a name for himself for his distinct tattooed style, boyish humor, high-profile celebrity relationships, and current online feud with Kanye West. 

Aidy Bryant joined Saturday Night Live in 2012, along with McKinnon. She starred in and produced three seasons of her show, Shrill, from 2019 to 2021, which had lots of success on Hulu. 

During her time on SNL, Bryant played memorable characters such as Ted Cruz and Sarah Huckabee Sanders. She brought back the popular avant-garde trend forecaster character alongside Bowen Yang during Weekend Update for her final sendoff. Yang and Weekend Update co-host Michael Che each kissed Bryant’s character goodbye. 

Kyle Mooney didn’t get a formal sendoff during the season finale, yet he appeared in multiple sketches. Mooney’s reacted on Twitter, claiming that the lack of acknowledgment of Mooney’s department was very apropos of his comedic style. 

Mooney joined the Saturday Night Live cast in 2013 alongside friend Beck Bennett, who left the show last year. He’s known for playing shy, awkward characters on the show.  

None of the departing SNL stars have announced anything yet about future plans. However, Davidson has a history of doing standup for Netflix, while Bryant had success with her show on Hulu. Fans predict McKinnon could look into becoming a talk show host, and Mooney might work on projects with pal Bennett.   

The four successful comedians leave behind a young and talented cast. The absences of popular comics like Davidson and McKinnon will undoubtedly be felt.

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