The first Saturday Night Live cast member has officially bowed out—just as longtime boss Lorne Michaels warned that a mass exodus is looming.
In a candid chat with Puck’s Matthew Belloni, Michaels, 80, admitted the late-night staple is bracing for a ‘significant shake-up,’ with several current stars expected to be cut before Season 51 kicks off October 4.
Asked if he was really planning to clear house, the producer didn’t hesitate: ‘Yes.’
While Michaels kept mum on which of the 17 cast members will get the axe, one comedian has already confirmed his exit.
Devon Walker took to Instagram to announce he’s leaving after three seasons, comparing his time at SNL to a rocky romance.
The 34-year-old admitted the job could be ‘toxic’ at times, though he stopped short of naming names.
When contacted by Daily Mail, Walker chuckled a bit as he said he did not want to comment ‘at this time.’
It remains unclear if his departure was his choice or not.
The first Saturday Night Live cast member , Devon Walker, has officially bowed out—just as longtime boss Lorne Michaels warned that a mass exodus is looming
Walker took to Instagram to announce he’s leaving after three seasons, comparing his time at SNL to a rocky romance
‘To me, jobs in this industry feel like a bunch of little marriages,’ he began in his Instagram post.
‘Some of em last for a long time if we’re lucky, but most of them are fleeting. Permanent until they’re not. That’s the deal. You know what it is it when you sign up.’
Looking back on his three years with the late-night staple, he admitted the highs came with plenty of lows.
‘Me and the show did three years together, and sometimes it was really cool,’ Walker continued.
‘Sometimes it was toxic as hell. But we did what we made the most of what it was, even amidst all of the dysfunction. We made a f–ked up lil family.’
The star said he was ultimately ‘happy’ he got to share the stage with his fellow comics, adding that he’s now preparing to take off overseas.
He wrapped things up with a surprising reveal. ‘Anyway, I’m bout to go to Japan,’ Walker concluded. ‘When I get back I’m tryna be in a prestige drama. Ideally something with Julianne Moore. Hope y’all staying hydrated and getting some money today.’
The Texas native cheekily captioned his exit post, ‘Me and baby broke up’, and shared his official announcement as a computer note bluntly titled: ‘Wait..did he quit or did he get fired?’
The 34-year-old admitted the job could be ‘toxic’ at times, though he stopped short of naming names; (seen in February)
He quickly became a standout on ‘Weekend Update’ with Colin Jost and Michael Che, nailing impressions of Michael Strahan, Van Jones, and NYC Mayor Eric Adams
One screenshot even showed him texting a friend, ‘I’m out’, punctuated with a celebration emoji.
Walker made his SNL debut in 2022 as a featured player in Season 48.
By 2024, he’d been bumped up to the main cast.
He quickly became a standout on ‘Weekend Update’ with Colin Jost and Michael Che, nailing impressions of Michael Strahan, Van Jones, and NYC Mayor Eric Adams.
Just before Walker went public, Michaels teased a big shake-up coming ahead of SNL’s Oct. 4 season premiere.
When asked whether he felt ‘pressure to reinvent this season’, Michaels said: ‘Yeah, for sure’. ‘It’ll be announced in a week or so,’ he added.
The most famous members of the current cast include Colin Jost, Bowen Yang and Kenan Thompson.
SNL Season 51 will premiere on Saturday, October 4, at 11:30 PM ET on NBC and Peacock, after the summer hiatus since May 17.
In a candid chat with Puck’s Matthew Belloni, Lorne Michaels, 80, admitted the late-night staple is bracing for a ‘significant shake-up,’ with several current stars expected to be cut before Season 51 kicks off October 4
When asked whether he felt ‘pressure to reinvent this season’, Michaels said: ‘Yeah, for sure’. ‘It’ll be announced in a week or so,’ Michaels added
Michaels also spoke about CBS firing Stephen Colbert and killing off his Late Show franchise, revealing that he was left ‘stunned’ by the move.
‘I’m on the side of the people who do shows, but there’s two audiences now,’ he said.
‘There’s the audience that is (watching on) TikTok and YouTube, and there’s a linear audience.
‘Both Seth (Meyers) and (Stephen) Colbert are heirs to David Letterman. You know what I mean? Conan (O’Brien) as well.
‘They’re going to be doing that (type of show), just as I’m still doing SNL, as if everybody’s watching that night.
‘But Jimmy (Fallon) does a lot of stuff that you can watch all day.’
CBS and its parent company, Paramount, announced that Colbert’s show would ‘end its historic run’ in May 2026, just over a decade after it first launched, as it hemorrhaged $40 million per year.
‘We consider Stephen Colbert irreplaceable and will retire the Late Show franchise at that time,’ the broadcast executives said.
SNL Season 51 will premiere on Saturday, October 4, at 11:30 PM ET on NBC and Peacock, after the summer hiatus since May 17
‘We are proud that Stephen called CBS home. He and his broadcast will be remembered in the pantheon of greats that graced late night television.’
A media expert told the Daily Mail that SNL could also be axed once Michaels – who created the show – finally retires.
Robert Thompson, who founded the Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture at Syracuse University, shared the gloomy forecast in late July.
Thompson said he believes that when Michaels retires, NBC may cancel SNL along with the 80-year-old media mogul’s other shows – which include The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and Late Night With Seth Meyers.
Speaking days after CNBC revealed SNL, Fallon and Meyers have been losing a combined $100 million a year, Thompson said, ‘(Lorne Michaels) cant keep doing that forever.
‘If he decides to retire, or cant do those shows anymore, NBC would be [in] an interesting position.’
He added that the network would have the ‘opportunity to get out of late night in one fell swoop instead of overhauling every program.
‘It would be the easiest time to say, we had a good run.’
