Saturday Night Live regular Michael Longfellow is exiting the NBC late night series after three seasons, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed.
Longfellow is the third SNL castmember to leave in recent weeks, following Devon Walker and featured player Emil Wakim. Longfellow’s departure, however, is a bit more surprising, as he had been seen as a possible future host for Weekend Update, the anchored topical segment that runs in the middle of each week’s episode.
Weekend Update has been anchored by Colin Jost and Michael Che for more than a decade, and Longfellow had appeared frequently during the recurring segment, in various roles.
Season 51 of SNL is expected to undergo significant changes, with the show’s longest-tenured castmember Kenan Thompson teasing as much earlier this year after the show’s 50th anniversary celebration, which included a star-studded live special and a concert at Radio City Music Hall.
Creator Lorne Michaels is said to be making the key casting decisions this week, with other veteran castmembers expected to exit, and a slate of new names expected to join the cast of the variety show when it returns to NBC Oct. 4.
Deadline first reported Longfellow’s exit.
