Saturday Night Live announces casting changes for landmark 50th season

Three new cast members have been added to Saturday Night Live for its 50th season as cast member Chloe Troast exits

By Mary Kate Carr | September 10, 2024 | 9:33am

Screenshot: NBC/YouTube

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Saturday Night Live announces casting changes for landmark 50th season

You know it’s about to be fall—or at least the fall TV season—when Saturday Night Live announces new cast members. The show tends to pick up about three newbies a year, but the annual tradition is just a bit more festive going into the show’s historic 50th season. NBC’s flagship comedy surely has some exciting surprises and celebrations in store for the next year, but it starts here with the addition of three young comics: Ashley Padilla, Emil Wakim, and Jane Wickline.

Per Variety, Padilla has been a member of the Groundlings since 2021 and has made appearances on Curb Your Enthusiasm and Night Court. Emil Wakim is an actor, writer, and stand-up comedian who was named the New Face of Comedy at the 2022 Just For Laughs Comedy Festival, and has performed on The Tonight Show. Jane Wickline is a sketch comedy performer known for her character work on TikTok.

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@janewicklineRomantic gesture♬ original sound – Jane Wickline

In addition to the new cast members, there’s some other changes ahead of the new season. Marcello Hernández, Michael Longfellow and Devon Walker have been promoted from featured players to the main cast. Meanwhile, Molly Kearney and Punkie Johnson’s exits were announced earlier this summer. On Monday, Chloe Troast shared she would also be leaving the show. The news is something of a surprise after Troast had a strong first season with a few memorable sketches, particularly ones where she showed off her pipes, like “Little Orphan Cassidy” and “Make Your Own Kind Of Music.”

Troast shared the news on Instagram, writing, “Unfortunately I was not asked back to SNL this season. I wish I was going back to be with all the amazing friends I made there, it truly felt like home. But it wasn’t in the cards. I wanna thank everyone who supported me. Especially everyone who came to see my tour this summer, wore costumes from characters and had such wonderful things to say. You mean everything to me. I hope I was able to spread joy and laughter, all love. Onwards and upwards.”

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