‘SNL’ Season 52 Cast Is Set, and the Exits Hit Harder Than the New Additions

Every fall, “Saturday Night Live” fans brace themselves for the same ritual: scanning cast announcements to see which familiar faces are gone and which fresh names are stepping into Studio 8H. After the seismic Season 51 overhaul that saw a wave of longtime performers depart all at once, this year’s turnover initially seemed like it might be a quieter one by comparison.

That expectation held for most of the roster, with the bulk of last season’s cast confirmed to return for the show’s 52nd season, which premieres September 26 with host Jalen Brunson and musical guest Katseye. But two departures in particular are likely to sting for longtime viewers who watched both performers grow into some of the show’s most recognizable faces.

Variety has confirmed the full cast for ‘Saturday Night Live’ Season 52, revealing that Bowen Yang and Chloe Fineman are both exiting the show, while Martin Herlihy, formerly of the sketch trio Please Don’t Destroy, is also not returning. Yang departed midseason following the show’s December 20, 2025 episode after six and a half years on the cast, while Fineman announced her own exit in July after seven seasons, sharing in a social media post that it was time for her next chapter.

Herlihy’s departure closes out a five-season run that included four years performing alongside Please Don’t Destroy before he transitioned to a writing role for Season 51, following the trio’s earlier split when fellow member John Higgins left the show.

Filling out the roster are two new featured players who emerged from this summer’s audition process, which took place across Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago. Grace Reiter, a Wisconsin-born comedian known for her role in Tim Robinson’s ‘The Chair Company’ and the upcoming series ‘Minimum Wage,’ joins the cast for her first season.

She’s joined by Saidah Belo-Osagie, a Nigerian American filmmaker and comedian from Queens, now based in Brooklyn, who created the event series Afrobeats Futura and the solo show ‘Saidah Gets Closure.’ Belo-Osagie also wrote and directed the 2020 short film ‘Tinge,’ rounding out a pair of debut players with distinct creative backgrounds heading into their first season on the iconic sketch show.

Beyond those changes, the vast majority of the cast remains intact from last season. Michael Che, Mikey Day, Andrew Dismukes, Marcello Hernández, James Austin Johnson, Colin Jost, Sarah Sherman, and Kenan Thompson all return, with Thompson beginning his 24th season as the show’s longest-tenured cast member.

The full cast for #SNL Season 52 has been finalized after the departures of Bowen Yang, Chloe Fineman and Martin Herlihy.

• Kenan Thompson
• Colin Jost
• Michael Che
• Mikey Day
• Sarah Sherman
• Marcello Hernández
• Ashley Padilla
• James Austin Johnson
• Andrew… pic.twitter.com/svs1DVgwoe

— Variety (@Variety) September 17, 2026

The featured player lineup also stays largely consistent, with Tommy Brennan, Jeremy Culhane, Ben Marshall, Ashley Padilla, Kam Patterson, Veronika Slowikowska, and Jane Wickline all returning for another run. Marshall, notably, continues building on his Season 51 promotion after years spent writing for the show and performing alongside Please Don’t Destroy.

Compared to Season 51, which saw a wave of departures including Heidi Gardner, Ego Nwodim, Devon Walker, Michael Longfellow, and Emil Wakim, this year’s changes are comparatively modest in scale. Still, losing both Yang and Fineman in the same offseason represents a meaningful shift for a cast that has leaned heavily on their versatility over the past several years.

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