Saturday Night Live season 49

Saturday Night Live
Season 49
No. of episodes	20
Release
Original network	NBC
Original release	October 14, 2023 (2023-10-14) – May 18, 2024 (2024-05-18)
Season chronology

The forty-ninth season of the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live premiered on October 14, 2023, during the 2023–24 television season, with host Pete Davidson and musical guest Ice Spice,^[1] and concluded on May 18, 2024 with host Jake Gyllenhaal and musical guest Sabrina Carpenter.^[2] The premiere was delayed due to the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike.^[3]

Cast

After the departures of eleven cast members between seasons 46 and 48, the entire cast from the previous season returned.^[1] James Austin Johnson and Sarah Sherman, who both joined as featured players prior to season 47, were promoted to repertory status, while Marcello Hernandez, Molly Kearney, Michael Longfellow and Devon Walker, all of whom joined the previous season, remained as featured players.^[4] On October 4, 2023, New York City-based comedian Chloe Troast was announced as a new cast member.^[5]

While not credited as cast members, the comedy group and SNL staff writers Please Don't Destroy (Martin Herlihy, Ben Marshall, and John Higgins) continue to appear in digital videos. In some episodes, starting with this season's premiere, they received the credit "A Film by Please Don't Destroy" in the opening montage, marking the first time since Robert Smigel's "TV Funhouse" cartoons that a recurring segment has its own credit in the opening.

On August 1, 2024, it was announced that cast member Punkie Johnson would be departing the series, after four years.^[6] The next day, on August 2, fellow castmate and featured player Molly Kearney announced that they were leaving the show, after just two years.^[7] Chloe Troast was let go after this season. ^[8]

Cast roster

Repertory players Michael Che Mikey Day Andrew Dismukes Chloe Fineman Heidi Gardner James Austin Johnson Punkie Johnson Colin Jost Ego Nwodim Sarah Sherman Kenan Thompson Bowen Yang

Featured players Marcello Hernandez Molly Kearney Michael Longfellow Chloe Troast Devon Walker

bold denotes "Weekend Update" anchor

Writers

Main article: List of Saturday Night Live writers § Season 49 (2023–24)

The entire writing staff from the previous season returned, with no changes.^[9]

However, after the Kate McKinnon-hosted episode, writer Ben Silva (who started writing for the show in 2021), left the show after 2½ years.^[10]

Beginning with the next Jacob Elordi episode, former writer Steven Castillo (who previously wrote for the show from 2017 to 2021) rejoined the writing staff.^[11]

This would be the final season for writers Alex English, Vannessa Jackson (who both joined the writing staff back in 2021), and Gary Richardson (who had been a writer on the show since 2017, with the exception of the 2021–22 season, and became writing supervisor, in the middle of the previous season).^[12]

Episodes

Main article: List of Saturday Night Live episodes

No. overall	No. in season	Host [13]	Musical guest [13]	Original air date [14]	U.S. viewers (millions) [15]
949	1	Pete Davidson	Ice Spice	October 14, 2023 (2023-10-14)	4.80[16]
Ice Spice performs "In Ha Mood" and "Pretty Girl" with Rema, with Taylor Swift introducing the latter. Davidson was an announced host for the previous season with musical guest Lil Uzi Vert, but both of their appearances were cancelled due to the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike. In lieu of a cold open, Davidson shares some reflections on the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel. For the first time in the series, "A Film by Please Don't Destroy" is announced in the opening credits. Travis Kelce appears in the "Fox NFL Sunday" sketch. John Mulaney appears in the pre-recorded "Please Don't Destroy – The Original Princes of Comedy" sketch, along with writers Ben Silva and Auguste White. After Weekend Update, a title card encourages viewers to donate to the American Red Cross and the International Rescue Committee in light of the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel. Chloe Troast's first episode as a cast member.
950	2	Bad Bunny	Bad Bunny	October 21, 2023 (2023-10-21)	4.04
Bad Bunny performs "Un Preview" and "Monaco". Pedro Pascal appears in the opening monologue, the "Protective Mom 2" sketch, and introduces Bad Bunny's second performance. Fred Armisen appears in the pre-recorded "The Age of Discovery" sketch. Mick Jagger appears in the "Telenovela" sketch and the "Convent Meeting" sketch. Lady Gaga introduces Bad Bunny's first performance in Spanish.
951	3	Nate Bargatze	Foo Fighters	October 28, 2023 (2023-10-28)	4.85[17]
Foo Fighters perform "Rescued" and "The Glass" with H.E.R.. Additionally, Dave Grohl appears in the pre-recorded "Lake Beach" sketch and the "Airplane" sketch. This episode marks the group's first televised appearance since the death of drummer Taylor Hawkins in 2022. Foo Fighters were initially scheduled to appear as a musical guest the previous season with host Jennifer Coolidge, but the appearance was cancelled due to the writers strike. Beginning with this episode, Mikey Day takes over portraying President Joe Biden from James Austin Johnson. Christopher Walken appears in the cold open and introduces Foo Fighters' first performance. Padma Lakshmi appears in the "Chef Showdown" sketch. Before the goodnights, a photo of actor Matthew Perry, who died hours before the episode aired, is shown in silence.
952	4	Timothée Chalamet	Boygenius	November 11, 2023 (2023-11-11)	3.68
Boygenius performs "Not Strong Enough" and "Satanist" and appear in the "Troye Sivan Sleep Demon" sketch. For both of their performances, they dressed as The Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show. Writer John Higgins of Please Don't Destroy appears in the cold open as Ron DeSantis. Alec Baldwin appears in the "Calm Sleep Story" sketch. This episode marks his first televised appearance since his shooting incident while filming Rust.
953	5	Jason Momoa	Tate McRae	November 18, 2023 (2023-11-18)	N/A (<4.67)[18]
Tate McRae performs "Greedy" and "Grave". During the goodnights, Colin Jost holds up a sign reading "We love you, Dana and Paula", referring to the death of Dana Carvey's son Dex earlier in the week.
954	6	Emma Stone	Noah Kahan	December 2, 2023 (2023-12-02)	3.89
Noah Kahan performs "Dial Drunk" and "Stick Season". Lorne Michaels, Tina Fey, and Candice Bergen appear in the opening monologue. Fey and Bergen induct Stone into the Five-Timers Club.
955	7	Adam Driver	Olivia Rodrigo	December 9, 2023 (2023-12-09)	4.22
Olivia Rodrigo performs "Vampire" and "All-American Bitch" and appears in the "Tiny-Ass Bag" sketch. Julia Stiles appears on Weekend Update. Before the goodnights, a photo of Norman Lear, who died earlier in the week, is shown in silence. Former cast member Cecily Strong was invited to portray Elise Stefanik in the cold open parody of a congressional hearing about antisemitism on American college campuses. At the last minute, the role went to Chloe Troast after Strong felt uncomfortable with the portrayal.[19][20]
956	8	Kate McKinnon	Billie Eilish	December 16, 2023 (2023-12-16)	N/A (<4.67)[18]
Billie Eilish performs "What Was I Made For?" and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas", both with Finneas on piano and Christian McBride on bass for the latter, and appears in the "Whiskers R We" sketch and the pre-recorded "Tampon Farm" sketch. Greta Gerwig joins McKinnon in introducing Eilish's first performance, "What Was I Made For?", which features a photo and video montage of various former and current SNL female cast members.[21] Gerwig also appears in the prerecorded "Tampon Farm" sketch. Maya Rudolph and Kristen Wiig appear in the opening monologue, the "ABBA Christmas" sketch, and the pre-recorded "Tampon Farm" sketch, in which Paula Pell also appears.
957	9	Jacob Elordi	Reneé Rapp	January 20, 2024 (2024-01-20)	4.34
Reneé Rapp performs "Snow Angel" and "Not My Fault" with Megan Thee Stallion and appears in the "Lip Reader" sketch. Rachel McAdams introduces Rapp's second performance and appears in the "Acting School" sketch. Writers Alex English and Rosebud Baker appear in the monologue. Xzibit appears in the cut-for-time pre-recorded "Please Don't Destroy – Pimp My Ride" sketch.[22]
958	10	Dakota Johnson	Justin Timberlake	January 27, 2024 (2024-01-27)	4.50
Justin Timberlake performs "Sanctified" with Tobe Nwigwe and "Selfish" and appears in the opening monologue and in "The Barry Gibb Talk Show" sketch. Jimmy Fallon appears in the opening monologue, in "The Barry Gibb Talk Show" sketch, and introduces Timberlake's second performance. Barbara Corcoran and Mark Cuban appear in the "Book Club" sketch. Dave Chappelle appeared in the goodnights.
959	11	Ayo Edebiri	Jennifer Lopez	February 3, 2024 (2024-02-03)	4.57
Jennifer Lopez performs "Can't Get Enough" with Latto and Redman and "This Is Me... Now". Nikki Haley appears in the cold open and says "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!" Writer Martin Herlihy of Please Don't Destroy appears in the "Bad Couples" sketch.
960	12	Shane Gillis	21 Savage	February 24, 2024 (2024-02-24)	3.99[24]
21 Savage performs "Redrum" and a medley of "Should've Wore a Bonnet" with Brent Faiyaz and "Prove It" with Summer Walker. Gillis was originally announced to be a cast member for season 45 in September 2019; he was fired within days, following backlash that resulted when clips of him using racist and homophobic language surfaced, beginning with one of him using an anti-Asian slur on his podcast that went viral on Twitter.[23]
961	13	Sydney Sweeney	Kacey Musgraves	March 2, 2024 (2024-03-02)	4.03[25]
Kacey Musgraves performs "Deeper Well" and "Too Good to be True". Glen Powell appears in the opening monologue and in the "Restaurant" sketch. Gina Gershon appears in the pre-recorded "Bowen's Straight" sketch.
962	14	Josh Brolin	Ariana Grande	March 9, 2024 (2024-03-09)	4.67[18]
Ariana Grande performs "We Can't Be Friends (Wait for Your Love)" and "Imperfect For You" and appears in the "People Pleaser" sketch and the Moulin Rouge! sketch. Scarlett Johansson appears as Katie Britt in the cold open. Grande's mother Joan Grande introduces her second performance. Following broadcast, elements during the "Bank Robbery" sketch that identified a Chase Bank as the setting were removed and replaced with signage for a fictional bank named Metro Capital.[26]
963	15	Ramy Youssef	Travis Scott	March 30, 2024 (2024-03-30)	3.89[28]
Travis Scott performs "My Eyes" and "Fe!n" with Playboi Carti, and appears in the pre-recorded "Please Don't Destroy" film. Both performances were excised from the episode's broadcast in the United Kingdom, but remained intact on streaming platforms.[27]
964	16	Kristen Wiig	Raye	April 6, 2024 (2024-04-06)	4.58[29]
Raye performs "Escapism" and "Worth It". Paul Rudd, Paula Pell, Matt Damon, Fred Armisen, Jon Hamm, Will Forte, Lorne Michaels, Martin Short, and Ryan Gosling appear in the opening monologue to induct Wiig into the Five-Timers Club. Forte also appears in the "Jumanji" and "Retirement Party" sketches. Hamm also appears in the "Secretaries" sketch. Rudd, Armisen, and Damon also appear in the "Retirement Party" sketch. Kaia Gerber appears in the pre-recorded "Pilates" sketch. Wiig reprises her Aunt Linda character on Weekend Update.
965	17	Ryan Gosling	Chris Stapleton	April 13, 2024 (2024-04-13)	4.70[33]
Chris Stapleton performs "White Horse" with his wife Morgane Stapleton and "Mountains of My Mind" and appears in the pre-recorded "Get That Boy Back" sketch. Kate McKinnon appears in the cold open, reprising her character Colleen Rafferty, introduced alongside Gosling in a season 41 episode. Emily Blunt appears in the opening monologue. Caitlin Clark appears on Weekend Update. Kyle Mooney appears in the cut-for-time "Papyrus 2" sketch. Following seven days of catch-up viewing, this episode reached 7.51 million viewers (the highest linear audience since December 10, 2022); with additional viewing across digital platforms, this increased to 8.9 million (the largest cross-platform audience since December 11, 2021). This episode was also the show's "most watched ever" on Peacock.[30] With seven days of cross-platform catch-up viewing, this episode scored a 2.0 demo rating, the highest in that metric since November 12, 2022.[31] The episode also recorded the highest number of YouTube users who had "viewed a portion of the episode" since 2020 (46 million).[32]
966	18	Dua Lipa	Dua Lipa	May 4, 2024 (2024-05-04)	4.74[34]
Dua Lipa performs "Illusion" and "Happy for You". Both performances were excised from the episode's broadcast in the United Kingdom, but remained intact on streaming platforms. Troye Sivan introduces Lipa's first performance. Jerry Seinfeld appears on Weekend Update and introduces Lipa's second performance.
967	19	Maya Rudolph	Vampire Weekend	May 11, 2024 (2024-05-11)	4.25[35]
Vampire Weekend performs "Gen-X Cops" and "Capricorn", both with Ariel Rechtshaid. Both performances were excised from the episode's broadcast in the United Kingdom, but remained intact on streaming platforms. Most of the cast appeared alongside their mothers to start the show in lieu of a standard cold open, with the exception of Please Don't Destroy, who appear with actors playing their fathers.
968	20	Jake Gyllenhaal	Sabrina Carpenter	May 18, 2024 (2024-05-18)	4.21[36]
Sabrina Carpenter performs "Espresso" for her first set and a medley of "Feather" and "Nonsense" for her second. Additionally, Carpenter appears as Daphne Blake in the pre-recorded "Scooby-Doo" sketch. Jon Hamm appears in the "Character Actor" sketch. Before the goodnights, a still photo of Dabney Coleman, who died two days earlier, is shown in silence. Punkie Johnson, Molly Kearney and Chloe Troast's final episode as cast members.

Ratings

Viewership and ratings per episode of Saturday Night Live season 49

No.	Title	Air date	Rating (18–49)	Viewers (millions)	Total (18–49)	Total viewers (millions)	Ref.
1	"Pete Davidson / Ice Spice"	October 14, 2023	0.96	4.80	N/A	N/A	[15]
2	"Bad Bunny"	October 21, 2023	0.74	4.04	N/A	N/A	[15]
3	"Nate Bargatze / Foo Fighters"	October 28, 2023	0.78	4.85	N/A	N/A	[15]
4	"Timothée Chalamet / Boygenius"	November 11, 2023	0.60	3.68	N/A	N/A	[15]
5	"Jason Momoa / Tate McRae"	November 18, 2023	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	—
6	"Emma Stone / Noah Kahan"	December 2, 2023	0.57	3.89	N/A	n/a / 6.4[a]	[15][37]
7	"Adam Driver / Olivia Rodrigo"	December 9, 2023	0.70	4.22	N/A	N/A	[15]
8	"Kate McKinnon / Billie Eilish"	December 16, 2023	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	—
9	"Jacob Elordi / Reneé Rapp"	January 20, 2024	0.75	4.34	N/A	N/A	[15]
10	"Dakota Johnson / Justin Timberlake"	January 27, 2024	0.74	4.50	N/A	N/A	[15]
11	"Ayo Edebiri / Jennifer Lopez"	February 3, 2024	0.65	4.57	N/A	N/A	[15]
12	"Shane Gillis / 21 Savage"	February 24, 2024	0.76	3.99	N/A	N/A	[15][24]
13	"Sydney Sweeney / Kacey Musgraves"	March 2, 2024	0.64	4.025	N/A	N/A	[15][25]
14	"Josh Brolin / Ariana Grande"	March 9, 2024	0.71	4.670	N/A	N/A	[15][18]
15	"Ramy Youssef / Travis Scott"	March 30, 2024	0.61	3.892	N/A	N/A	[15][28]
16	"Kristen Wiig / Raye"	April 6, 2024	0.82	4.575	N/A	N/A	[15][29]
17	"Ryan Gosling / Chris Stapleton"	April 13, 2024	0.75	4.704	n/a / 2.0[a]	7.51 / 8.9[a]	[15][33][30][31]
18	"Dua Lipa"	May 4, 2024	0.77	4.741	N/A	N/A	[15][34]
19	"Maya Rudolph / Vampire Weekend"	May 11, 2024	0.68	4.251	N/A	N/A	[15][35]
20	"Jake Gyllenhaal / Sabrina Carpenter"	May 18, 2024	0.66	4.205	N/A	N/A	[15][36]

1. Includes cross-platform viewing, such as on Peacock.

References

1. Porter, Rick (October 4, 2023). "'Saturday Night Live' Sets Return Date at NBC". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
2. Iannucci, Rebecca (May 2, 2024). "Saturday Night Live: Maya Rudolph, Jake Gyllenhaal to Host Final Season 49 Episodes". TVLine. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
3. Dixon, Marcus James (2023-10-04). "'Saturday Night Live' Season 49 cast for 'SNL' 2023–24: Who's in? Who's out?". GoldDerby. Retrieved 2023-10-06.
4. White, Peter; Grobar, Matt (October 4, 2023). "'SNL': Pete Davidson & Bad Bunny Among Hosts As NBC Show Sets Returns With SAG-AFTRA Blessing, Full Cast Comes Back For Season 49 & Chloe Troast Joins". Deadline. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
5. Schwartz, Ryan (October 4, 2023). "Saturday Night Live Sets Return Date; Pete Davidson to Host Season 49 Premiere". TVLine. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
6. https://deadline.com/2024/08/punkie-johnson-leaving-snl-1236028768/
7. Kearney, Molly (2024-08-02). "Yall that's a wrap on my time on SNL!". Instagram. Retrieved 2024-08-02.
8. Andreeva, Nellie (2024-09-10). "'SNL' Adds Ashley Padilla, Emil Wakim & Jane Wickline To Cast For Season 50, Promotes Trio As Chloe Troast Departs". Deadline. Retrieved 2024-09-10.
9. "Pete Davidson/Ice Spice". Saturday Night Live. Season 49. Episode 1. October 14, 2023. Event occurs at Closing credits. NBC.
10. "Kate McKinnon/Billie Eilish". Saturday Night Live. Season 49. Episode 8. December 16, 2023. Event occurs at Closing credits. NBC.
11. "Jacob Elordi/Reneé Rapp". Saturday Night Live. Season 49. Episode 9. January 20, 2024. Event occurs at Closing credits. NBC.
12. https://www.vulture.com/article/snl-season-50-carl-tart-allie-levitan-moss-perricone.html
13. Porter, Rick (October 17, 2023). "'Saturday Night Live': All the Season 49 Hosts and Musical Guests". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 17, 2023.
14. "Saturday Night Live Episode Listings". The Futon Critic.
15. "Saturday Night Live (SNL) Ratings on NBC". USTVDB. Archived from the original on 22 May 2024. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
16. "'Saturday Night Live' Returns To NBC With Promising Audience Growth For Season 49 Premiere". Deadline Hollywood. October 17, 2023. Retrieved November 6, 2023.
17. "Nate Bargatze's 'SNL' Scored Highest Ratings Since Steve Martin and Martin Short's 2022 Episode". Yahoo!. November 1, 2023. Retrieved November 6, 2023.
18. Katz, A.J. (12 March 2024). "Josh Brolin SNL Delivers Largest Audience Since October". LateNighter. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
19. Roe, Mike (December 10, 2023). "Cecily Strong Pulled From 'SNL' Cold Open Following Dress Rehearsal". The Wrap. Retrieved December 10, 2023.
20. Kornick, Lindsay (December 11, 2023). "Cecily Strong reportedly pulled out of playing Stefanik in controversial 'SNL' skit, felt 'uncomfortable'". Fox News.
21. "Billie Eilish tributes women of 'SNL' during musical performance montage". Entertainment Weekly.
22. Caruso, Nick (January 22, 2024). "SNL's Pimp My Ride 'Revival' Features Original Host Xzibit — Watch Cut-for-Time Sketch". TVLine. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
23. Tolentino, Daysia (February 5, 2024). "Shane Gillis was fired from 'SNL' for racist and homophobic jokes. Now he's going to host". NBC News. Archived from the original on April 21, 2024. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
24. Katz, A.J. "Shane Gillis' Saturday Night Live Struggles in Total Viewers, But Thrives in P18-49 Demo". LateNighter. Retrieved 3 March 2024.
25. Katz, A.J. (5 March 2024). "Sydney Sweeney-Hosted SNL Gains Total Viewers, Sheds P18-49 From Prior Week". LateNighter. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
26. Rosenzweig, Jed (18 March 2024). "Chase Bank to SNL: Thanks But No Thanks". LateNighter. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
27. Rosenzweig, Jed (1 April 2024). "Travis Scott Performances Cut From SNL's UK Broadcast". LateNighter. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
28. Katz, A.J. (2 April 2024). "Ramy Youssef SNL Delivers Smallest Audience Since December". LateNighter. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
29. Katz, A.J. (9 April 2024). "Kristen Wiig and Friends Deliver SNL's Largest P18-49 Audience Since Season Premiere". LateNighter. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
30. Katz, A.J. (24 April 2024). "Ryan Gosling SNL Sees Huge Ratings Bump From Delayed, Cross-Platform Viewing". LateNighter. Retrieved 25 April 2024.
31. Hailu, Salome (24 April 2024). "Ryan Gosling Brings 'SNL' Its Most-Watched Episode Ever on Peacock". Variety. Retrieved 25 April 2024.
32. Maglio, Tony (24 April 2024). "Ryan Gosling — and Beavis and Butt-Head — Lift 'SNL' to Its Most-Watched Episode Since 2021". IndieWire. Retrieved 25 April 2024.
33. Katz, A.J. (16 April 2024). "Ryan Gosling-Fronted SNL Delivers Largest Audience Since Oct. 2023". LateNighter. Retrieved 16 April 2024.
34. Katz, A.J. (7 May 2024). "Dua Lipa-Led SNL Delivers Largest Audience in Several Months". LateNighter. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
35. Katz, A.J. (14 May 2024). "Maya Rudolph-Led SNL Delivers Smallest Live-Plus-Same-Day Audience Since March". LateNighter. Retrieved 14 May 2024.
36. Katz, A.J. (21 May 2024). "SNL Season 49 Finale Sheds Viewers". LateNighter. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
37. Friedman, Roger (16 December 2023). ""Saturday Night Live" Ratings Booming Under New Formula, Scored Big with Oscar Winner Emma Stone, Singer Noah Kahan". Showbiz411. Retrieved 22 May 2024.