‘SNL’ Is Screen-Testing New ‘Weekend Update’ Anchors
The tea leaves continue to form unmistakable patterns for Saturday Night Live and Weekend Update. After Lorne Michaels announced he’ll be shaking up the cast this year, Michael Che dropped more cryptic hints this week that his comedy career is about to change forever. Then Colin Jost revealed that he’s picked up yet another side hustle, hosting a pregame show for the Ryder Cup at the end of September, just a week before Season 51’s premiere.
If you can’t quite taste that tea yet, LateNighter is reporting that SNL has conducted at least one screen test for new Weekend Update anchors. Last May, frequent Weekend Update deskpiece comic Michael Longfellow paired with SNL writer and stand-up comic KC Shornima to film a tryout for the gig.
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Longfellow has seemingly been groomed for the job for a while now, a younger, slightly more sinister version of Jost’s “handsome journalist” archetype. Fan speculation has had Longfellow on top of the Weekend Update short list for a while now, with bits like these serving as auditions for what’s to come.
Shornima may be a new name for many SNL fans, but she’s earned an audition after three years as a Weekend Update writer. The 30-year-old comic would be the segment’s first female anchor since Amy Poehler left in Season 34.
The audition is far from a sure sign that Longfellow and Shornima have the job, but it’s one more omen that there will finally be a changing of the guard at the Update desk. While Che and Jost have done consistently funny work, they’ve had their turn. Their 11-year run more than doubled any other version of the segment. If Michaels is truly intent on reinventing SNL in his final years, starting here makes sense.
Michaels promised this would be the week that we’d learn about the show’s new direction, and we’ve already seen the departures of Devon Walker and writers Celeste Yim and Rosebud Baker. That was only Monday. Expect more shoes to drop this week if the overhaul is indeed as consequential as Kenan Thompson hinted back in May.
Several of Saturday Night Live’s best years — like Season 12, which introduced Dana Carvey, Jan Hooks and Phil Hartman; or Season 21, which welcomed Will Ferrell, Cheri Oteri and Chris Kattan — came after Michaels cleaned house and brought in fresh blood. After a few seasons of forgettable sketches, it’s time for another infusion of fresh talent.
Swirl the cup, everybody — more SNL tea is coming.