The forty-fourth season of the NBC comedy series Saturday Night Live premiered on September 29, 2018, during the 2018–19 television season with host Adam Driver and musical guest Kanye West[1][2] and concluded on May 18, 2019, with host Paul Rudd and musical guest DJ Khaled.[3]
Saturday Night Live | |
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Season 44 | |
No. of episodes | 21 |
Release | |
Original network | NBC |
Original release | September 29, 2018 May 18, 2019 | –
Season chronology | |
Cast
editPrior to the start of the season, Luke Null (who joined the cast for the previous season) was let go from the show.[1] Upright Citizens Brigade alum Ego Nwodim joined the cast as a featured player, replacing Null. Nwodim became the seventh African-American female cast member in the show's history.[4] Mikey Day, Alex Moffat, and Melissa Villaseñor, all three of whom were hired in 2016 for season 42, were upgraded to repertory status, while Heidi Gardner and Chris Redd, both of whom were hired in 2017 for season 43, remained as featured players.
Aside from Null, all other cast members from the previous season returned to the show, including guest star Alec Baldwin in his role as President Donald Trump.[5] Despite mounting rumors that this would be the last season for Kenan Thompson,[6] Thompson insisted he would not be leaving SNL anytime soon.[7]
This would be the final season for Leslie Jones, who had been with the cast for five seasons since 2014. Jones announced her departure on August 27, 2019,[8][9] in favor of focusing on her movie career.
Cast roster
edit
Repertory players |
Featured players
|
bold denotes "Weekend Update" anchor
Writers
editPrior to the start of the season, the show added Alison Gates, Alan Linic, Eli Mandel, and Bowen Yang to the writing staff,[4] while co-head writer Bryan Tucker was designated a senior writer, leaving Colin Jost, Michael Che, and Kent Sublette as the show's remaining head writers.[10] In March 2019, writer Anna Drezen (who had joined the writing staff in 2016) was named as co-writing supervisor, alongside Streeter Seidell, Fran Gillespie, and Sudi Green.[11]
This was the final season for Katie Rich, who had previously been a writer on the show since 2013.[12]
Episodes
editNo. overall | No. in season | Host | Musical guest(s) | Original air date | Ratings/ Share | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
851 | 1 | Adam Driver | Kanye West | September 29, 2018 | 4.8/11[15] | |
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852 | 2 | Awkwafina | Travis Scott | October 6, 2018 | 4.2/10[16] | |
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853 | 3 | Seth Meyers | Paul Simon | October 13, 2018 | 4.4/10[18] | |
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854 | 4 | Jonah Hill | Maggie Rogers | November 3, 2018 | 4.4/10[19] | |
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855 | 5 | Liev Schreiber | Lil Wayne | November 10, 2018 | 4.0/10[21] | |
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856 | 6 | Steve Carell | Ella Mai | November 17, 2018 | 4.4/11[24] | |
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857 | 7 | Claire Foy | Anderson .Paak | December 1, 2018 | 4.1/10[25] | |
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858 | 8 | Jason Momoa | Mumford & Sons | December 8, 2018 | 4.3/10[26] | |
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859 | 9 | Matt Damon | Mark Ronson & Miley Cyrus | December 15, 2018 | 4.8/12[30] | |
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860 | 10 | Rachel Brosnahan | Greta Van Fleet | January 19, 2019 | 4.5/11[31] | |
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861 | 11 | James McAvoy | Meek Mill | January 26, 2019 | 4.1/10[32] | |
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862 | 12 | Halsey | Halsey | February 9, 2019 | 4.7/11[33] | |
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863 | 13 | Don Cheadle | Gary Clark Jr. | February 16, 2019 | 4.3/11[34] | |
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864 | 14 | John Mulaney | Thomas Rhett | March 2, 2019 | 4.7/11[35] | |
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865 | 15 | Idris Elba | Khalid | March 9, 2019 | 4.5/11[36] | |
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866 | 16 | Sandra Oh | Tame Impala | March 30, 2019 | 4.1/10[37] | |
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867 | 17 | Kit Harington | Sara Bareilles | April 6, 2019 | 4.4/11[38] | |
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868 | 18 | Emma Stone | BTS | April 13, 2019 | 3.9/10[39] | |
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869 | 19 | Adam Sandler | Shawn Mendes | May 4, 2019 | 4.8/12[42] | |
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870 | 20 | Emma Thompson | Jonas Brothers | May 11, 2019 | 4.2/10[43] | |
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871 | 21 | Paul Rudd | DJ Khaled | May 18, 2019 | 4.0/10[44] | |
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Notes
edit- ^ Simon had previously performed "Bridge over Troubled Water" on November 20, 1976, the eighth episode of the show's second season.
References
edit- ^ a b Williams, Janice (September 1, 2018). "When does 'Saturday Night Live' Season 44 premiere? 'SNL' Returns this fall". Newsweek.
- ^ Otterson, Joe (September 17, 2018). "Adam Driver to Host 'SNL' Season 44 Opener, Kanye West to Perform". Variety. Retrieved September 21, 2018.
- ^ NBC (April 17, 2019). ""Saturday Night Live" Closes Out Its 44th Season with Three Back-to-Back Shows in May". The Futon Critic. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
- ^ a b Douglas, Esme (September 21, 2018). "Here's what you need to know about SNL's newest cast member, Ego Nwodim". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved September 21, 2018.
- ^ Butler, Bethonie (September 21, 2018). "Alec Baldwin says he'll play Trump again on SNL — even though 'it's like agony'". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 21, 2018.
- ^ Bradley, Laura (February 14, 2019). "Is Kenan Thompson Plotting His S.N.L. Exit?". Vanity Fair.
- ^ Ivie, Devon (May 4, 2019). "Nothing's Up With That, Because Kenan Thompson Insists He's Not Leaving SNL". Vulture. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
- ^ Nellie Andreeva (August 27, 2019). "Leslie Jones departs Saturday Night Live after 5 seasons, Kate McKinnon to return for Season 45". Deadline. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
- ^ "Leslie Jones to Leave 'Saturday Night Live' Ahead Of 45 Season". TheWrap. August 27, 2019. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
- ^ Megh Wright (September 10, 2018). "Here Are the Co-Head Writers of Saturday Night Live Season 44". Vulture. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
- ^ "Sandra Oh/Tame Impala". Saturday Night Live. Season 44. Episode 18. March 30, 2019. Event occurs at Closing credits. NBC.
- ^ "Chicago Party Aunt Creator Katie Rich is Never Leaving the Midwest". Vanity Fair. October 21, 2021.
- ^ Alexander, Bryan (October 7, 2018). "'Saturday Night Live': Pete Davidson rips Kanye West's 'wrong' pro-Trump rant after 'SNL'". USA Today.
- ^ "Ariana Grande Dropped Out of 'SNL' Premiere for "Emotional Reasons"". The Hollywood Reporter. September 28, 2018. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
- ^ ""Saturday Night Live" Delivers Its #2 Top-Rated Season Premiere Overnights in Six Years". The Futon Critic. September 30, 2018. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: College Football Puts ABC on Top". The Futon Critic. October 7, 2018. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
- ^ Kurtz, Judy (October 18, 2018). "Baltimore Police union objects to 'Thirsty Cops' sketch on 'SNL'". The Hill.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: ABC Cruises to Victory with College Football". The Futon Critic. October 14, 2018. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: Alabama/LSU Showdown Puts CBS on Top". The Futon Critic. November 4, 2018. Retrieved November 5, 2018.
- ^ Sims, David (November 11, 2018). "A Veterans Day Apology From Saturday Night Live and Pete Davidson". The Atlantic. Retrieved November 11, 2018.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: ABC Wins Latest College Football Showdown". The Futon Critic. November 11, 2018. Retrieved November 11, 2018.
- ^ Hinzmann, Dennis (November 19, 2018). "Peppermint & Jiggly Caliente Get You There as 'GPYass' on 'SNL'". Out. Retrieved November 19, 2018.
- ^ Daw, Stephen (November 19, 2018). "Peppermint and Jiggly Caliente Make Road Trips More Fun in Epic 'SNL' Sketch". Billboard. Retrieved May 21, 2022.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: ABC Wins Demo Race with College Football". The Futon Critic. November 18, 2018. Retrieved November 18, 2018.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: Big Ten Championship Puts FOX on Top". The Futon Critic. December 2, 2018. Retrieved December 3, 2018.
- ^ "Saturday Ratings: ABC's 'The Alec Baldwin Show' DOA on Saturday". Programming Insider. December 9, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
- ^ Ellis, Ralph; Marco, Tony (December 16, 2018). "Pete Davidson makes brief appearance on 'SNL' after troubling Instagram post". CNN. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
- ^ Caron, Christina; Mays, Jeffery C. (December 15, 2018). "Pete Davidson of 'Saturday Night Live' Is Accounted For After Alarming Instagram Post". The New York Times. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
- ^ "Trump Got Really Mad at SNL. It Was a Rerun This Week". Esquire. March 17, 2019.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: UFC Sparks Demo Victory for FOX". The Futon Critic. December 16, 2018. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: ABC Gets Boost from NBA Coverage". The Futon Critic. January 20, 2019. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: ABC Tops Demos with NBA Coverage". The Futon Critic. January 27, 2019. Retrieved January 27, 2019.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: Alliance of American Football Opens on Top for CBS". The Futon Critic. February 10, 2019. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: ABC, NBC Share Top Honors on Modest Night". The Futon Critic. February 17, 2019. Retrieved February 17, 2019.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: NBA Leads Demo Race for ABC". The Futon Critic. March 3, 2019. Retrieved March 3, 2019.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: NBC Tops Viewers, Shares Demo Crown". The Futon Critic. March 10, 2019. Retrieved March 11, 2019.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: NBC Tops Low Key Night with "Dateline"". The Futon Critic. March 31, 2019. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: CBS Wins Big with Final Four Coverage". The Futon Critic. April 7, 2019. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: ABC Wins Sports Showdown with NBA Playoffs". The Futon Critic. April 14, 2019. Retrieved April 14, 2019.
- ^ Wright, Megh (May 3, 2019). "Adam Sandler's Old SNL Office Now Belongs to the 'Weekend Update' Guys". Vulture. Retrieved May 7, 2019.
- ^ "Adam Sandler's Return to 'SNL' Marks Longest Gap of Any Former Cast Member to Host". April 9, 2019.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: NBA Playoffs Put ABC on Top". The Futon Critic. May 5, 2019. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: NBC Edges Competition with NHL Playoffs". The Futon Critic. May 12, 2019. Retrieved May 12, 2019.
- ^ "Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: NBC Tops Viewers, Shares Demo Crown with FOX". The Futon Critic. May 19, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.