Speculation: Season 45

[helenamonster]

I wonder if they'll do a kind of final send-off version of Celebrity Jeopardy, given Alex Trebek's health. I don't like to put such negativity out into the universe but after the tribute that one contestant did this past week, I think it could be very sweet.

[Pete Martell]

Jennifer Lopez and Scarlett Johansson feel like safe choices (although given how controversial Scarlett is these days maybe not), and also there for the perfunctory awards season hosts. I have few memories of Jennifer's episodes (I don't think I ever watched the second one). Scarlett's episodes have had various memorable moments, although the only one I remember which relied on her performance was the Black Widow pre-tape. I wonder if we may get various cameos in hers to help keep the night going (or we may just get a lot of dogs). I'm kind of hoping she and Colin Jost do something to troll the audience, just to see the reactions on social media, although I doubt they'd do that. (I do keep seeing people ask if she's going to have a sketch where she plays a tree...).

[helenamonster]

I actually think JLo is a very talented actress (she was great in Hustlers), but she has no comedic timing. I think casting her as the straight man would be playing to her strengths.

Still can't believe Scarlett Johansson is engaged to Colin of all people.

Two former One Direction members musical guesting within a month of each other. Alrighty then.

Lizzo should be a good time. I hope they put her in a sketch or two.

[vb68]

How many times is this for Scarlett? Maybe four? She's gotta be getting close to Five Times. 

[AriAu]

Quote

How many times is this for Scarlett? Maybe four? She's gotta be getting close to Five Times. 

She already made the Five Timers Club,

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Saturday_Night_Live_guests#Five-Timers_Club

Does seem fast for someone so young, but she has had lots of things to come promote

[vb68]

7 minutes ago, AriAu said:

She already made the Five Timers Club,

Thanks, I should had known that.

[vb68]

So I'm told this is the schedule for second half of the season--

Jan 25

Feb 01

Feb 08

Feb 29

Mar 07

Mar 28

Apr 04

Apr 11

May 02

May 09

May 16

It really looks bunched together to me. I suppose they are waiting a whole month to come back after Christmas to hit those Democratic primaries hard? I think the Iowa Caucuses are right at the beginning of February. But they seem to hate doing those political sketches now, so who knows.

Edited November 22, 2019 by vb68

[Pete Martell]

10 minutes ago, vb68 said:

So I'm told this is the schedule for second half of the season--

Jan 25

Feb 01

Feb 08

Feb 29

Mar 07

Mar 28

Apr 04

Apr 11

May 02

May 09

May 16

It really looks bunched together to me. I suppose they are waiting a whole month to come back after Christmas to hit those Democratic primaries hard? I think the Iowa Caucuses are right at the beginning of February. But they seem to hate doing those political sketches now, so who knows.

I think it's because they had more episodes in the fall - usually they only have 9. I'm not sure why they had 10 this season. Some fans think it's because a big cast member is leaving, but we haven't heard anything along those lines. 

2 hours ago, vb68 said:

Thanks, I should had known that.

Her 5-Timers episode had no real fanfare, so I'm not surprised you didn't remember. I guess they felt she wasn't big enough (although I guess she ended up getting a big gift most hosts don't get anyway...). 

Scarlett was asked later on if she still had her jacket. She said they took it back after the monologue.

[Robert Lynch]

Fred Savage, Drew Barrymore, and Jodi Foster were the only child actors that hosted SNL when they were kids or teenagers. Do you think SNL would allow an child actor to host now? The only one that hosted SNL and was a teenager was Justin Bieber several years ago. You think Lorne would do that now? It seemed the age range for hosts extends from late 20s-60s so far. The oldest was Betty White. I wonder if a child actor would ever host. Fred Savage was good, considering his age and knowing that was the golden years of SNL. I liked the Church Lady monologue and that was gold. You'll think it would happen?

[vb68]

2 hours ago, Robert Lynch said:

Fred Savage, Drew Barrymore, and Jodi Foster were the only child actors that hosted SNL when they were kids or teenagers.

Macauley Culkin.  How old were the Olsen Twins?

Sure, I don't see why not if someone is popular enough.  They have come close with people like Taylor Swift, Taylor Lautner, Justin Bieber, etc..

Edited November 24, 2019 by vb68

[Robert Lynch]

I nearly forgotten about Macaulay Culkin. I do remember his opening being a Home Alone homage, with Lorne and Co. I remember the Olsens, too. They were promoting In A New York Minute then.

It would be awesome to have a child actor host again. Usually, they have the most energy to be game for anything.

[DollEyes]

If they do use another child actor, chances are it'll be either Millie Bobby Brown or Finn Wolfhard, who not only co-star on Stranger Things, one of the hottest shows on television, they've both got budding  movie careers, with Brown's lead role in Godzilla: King Of the Monsters & Wolfhard's role in the It movies.

[Robert Lynch]

2 hours ago, DollEyes said:

If they do use another child actor, chances are it'll be either Millie Bobby Brown or Finn Wolfhard, who not only co-star on Stranger Things, one of the hottest shows on television, they've both got budding  movie careers, with Brown's lead role in Godzilla: King Of the Monsters & Wolfhard's role in the It movies.

That would be neat. I could actually see that happening. Finn always spoked highly of Bill Hader, so a cameo from him in the monologue would be awesome. Of course, they will do a Stranger Things sketch with either of them. That would be a given.

[Dejana]

I don't think Lindsay Lohan was 18 yet when she first hosted; I remember the Harry Potter sketch raising a few eyebrows because it was an extended boob joke centered around a 17-year-old actress (and about an even younger character). The Olsen twins hosted a few weekends later and they are the same age as Lindsay, so that would be two (three?) teen hosts in one season. It was still 2004, so not very recently.

I wouldn't be surprised to see Jacob Tremblay end up hosting before he's 18. His parents let him make Good Boys already, so SNL couldn't possibly be too edgy in comparison.

Edited November 24, 2019 by Dejana

[Robert Lynch]

If Jacob Tremblay does host, they better let Will Forte reprise his MacGruber role. The best one was the Betty White bit, which cracked me up. I know the whole MacGruber sketches were ridiculous, but Forte and Wiig manages to make those characters work. Tremblay seems to have a knack for comedy. He was good in Good Boys. It is pretty amazing to see a child star to not rely on his good looks and charisma. River was liked that, too. He was pretty funny in Forte’s The Last  Man On Earth as the small version of the main character.

One SNL skit that was shocking was a 13 year old Fred Savage playing with a gun and Phil Hartman/Victoria Jackson were the parents who find the gun. I know, a gun in that episode. So weird to see what became of Phil after that.

Edited November 25, 2019 by Robert Lynch

[wknt3]

On 11/21/2019 at 8:28 PM, vb68 said:

So I'm told this is the schedule for second half of the season--

Jan 25

Feb 01

Feb 08

Feb 29

Mar 07

Mar 28

Apr 04

Apr 11

May 02

May 09

May 16

It really looks bunched together to me. I suppose they are waiting a whole month to come back after Christmas to hit those Democratic primaries hard? I think the Iowa Caucuses are right at the beginning of February. But they seem to hate doing those political sketches now, so who knows.

On 11/21/2019 at 8:39 PM, Pete Martell said:

I think it's because they had more episodes in the fall - usually they only have 9. I'm not sure why they had 10 this season. Some fans think it's because a big cast member is leaving, but we haven't heard anything along those lines.

That seems a more likely explanation for the bunching than the political schedule, combined with the fact they want to have new episodes for sweeps months (even if they're not nearly as important as they used to be) and avoid major holidays. As far as why they had an extra episode in the fall it could be an NBC request for whatever reason since the networks have been experimenting a lot with scheduling in recent years.

[vb68]

9 hours ago, wknt3 said:

That seems a more likely explanation for the bunching than the political schedule, combined with the fact they want to have new episodes for sweeps months (even if they're not nearly as important as they used to be) and avoid major holidays.

They are doing a show Dec. 21st, so I don't think they too concerned with avoiding holidays.

It may not be the only consideration, but covering the campaigns is generally their bread and butter. After watching the Will Ferrell episode, they are already transitioning to it.  

Edited November 25, 2019 by vb68

[Pete Martell]

8 minutes ago, vb68 said:

They are doing a show Dec. 21st, so I don't think they too concerned with avoiding holidays.

It may not be the only consideration, but after the Will Ferrell episode, I'm more convinced than ever that they are ready to hit the primaries hard and move away from Trump.  

I'm still left wondering where they will go with that. Right now Pete Buttigieg (someone they have mostly avoided giving any real focus to) is winning Iowa and New Hampshire, with Bernie not far behind. If Bernie does win will they bring Larry David back? Will Pete Davidson be on vacation again? Even if Warren wins, I don't see Kate staying past this season. If Biden wins I don't see Woody still doing appearances.

They really need to start work on getting some of these impressions in the hands of cast members, and cast members who will be around a little longer. 

Edited November 25, 2019 by Pete Martell

[vb68]

15 hours ago, Pete Martell said:

If Biden wins I don't see Woody still doing appearances.

I'm shocked they are going with Woody for their Biden, especially with Alec complaining ALL THE TIME how sick he is of doing his impression. You'd think they would want to avoid a repeat of that at all costs.  I think Kate may be more amenable to guest appearances every so often, but who knows. I definitely think Colin is just a stop gap measure with Buttigieg. They will worry about that one long term when they have to but aren't worried about it now.

Edited November 25, 2019 by vb68

[DollEyes]

 Between The Mandalorian  & his role in next summer's Wonder Woman 1984, I think that another great future host would be Pedro Pascal. Bonus points if he does some of the opening monologue in Mando's helmet & there's a joke about the only reason he's there is because Baby Yoda is booked.

[Robert Lynch]

On 12/8/2019 at 3:36 PM, DollEyes said:

 Between The Mandalorian  & his role in next summer's Wonder Woman 1984, I think that another great future host would be Pedro Pascal. Bonus points if he does some of the opening monologue in Mando's helmet & there's a joke about the only reason he's there is because Baby Yoda is booked.

Now that would be awesome. I am shocked that Jude Law has not hosted since 2010 since he has that show The Last Pope. You think they would have asked him to host prior to season 44 at least. He should host. 

Jacob Tremblay would be interesting, but I wondered if the writers would use his talent to the fullest or it would be another you are so great, etc. scenario. The kid has great facial expressions from crying to horrified, so anything is possible. And he seems to love being the center of a joke. I could see a Kyle Mooney skit with him. Not sure which SNL performer would work well with him. Probably a McGruber sketch would be awesome or I'll settle another Californians sketch. 

I have so many ideas.

[vb68]

I was thinking we might get some combo of Gal Gadot and/or Kristin Wiig, probably for the finale.

Also with Scarlett Johannsson and David Harbour hosting, we could get Florence Pugh sometime next Spring with her popping as the next big thing.

With Oscar campaigning heating up, Renee Zellweger would an interesting return host from some years ago. I suppose it depends on how hard she wants to campaign.

I also suspect it's only a matter of time before Nick Jonas gets a solo outing as host, especially with him joining The Voice. 

[Pete Martell]

I keep wondering if John Mulaney will host again this season. Or if he will cameo in either of the next two weeks for his Netflix special.

[DollEyes]

On 11/24/2019 at 7:58 AM, Robert Lynch said:

That would be neat. I could actually see that happening. Finn always spoked highly of Bill Hader, so a cameo from him in the monologue would be awesome. Of course, they will do a Stranger Things sketch with either of them. That would be a given.

Fun fact: Finn Wolfhard's first choice to play his adult counterpart in It Chapter Two was Hader, so I wouldn't be surprised if Hader does a cameo. 

Now that Wolfhard's in Ghostbusters:Afterlife, I can not only see him hosting the show, I predict that he'll host before the season finale.

Two more potential hosts could be Oscar winners Viola Davis & Regina King. I would love to see if Ms. Davis is as great at comedy as she is at drama. As for Ms.King, since she started on 227, I'd like to see her do comedy again, especially a Watchmen parody.

Edited December 17, 2019 by DollEyes

[LBS]

10 hours ago, DollEyes said:

As for Ms.King, since she started on 227, I'd like to see her do comedy again, especially a Watchmen parody.

Co-sign 100X!  

[vb68]

Oh I was just thinking about it, and  one huge reason we probably don't have a show until the 25th is Lorne hates when a NFL playoff (or any other live event, I guess) bleeds over into the show's timeslot. I remember the show actually got higher ratings with the audience spillover, but Lorne is a stickler about the show starting on time.

I'm not sure if they know or can even accurately guess the dates of the playoffs on which channels when they set the schedule for the show over the summer, so it's probably easier just to wait until they are over. (And even if they go long on another network, it would prevent people from switching over.)

But yeah, Lorne HATES the NFL messing with his show.   

[Guest]

On 1/14/2020 at 1:52 PM, vb68 said:

Oh I was just thinking about it, and  one huge reason we probably don't have a show until the 25th is Lorne hates when a NFL playoff (or any other live event, I guess) bleeds over into the show's timeslot. I remember the show actually got higher ratings with the audience spillover, but Lorne is a stickler about the show starting on time.

I'm not sure if they know or can even accurately guess the dates of the playoffs on which channels when they set the schedule for the show over the summer, so it's probably easier just to wait until they are over. (And even if they go long on another network, it would prevent people from switching over.)

But yeah, Lorne HATES the NFL messing with his show.   

Can't say I blame him. It's not like 60 Minutes or the Simpsons where it's all pre-done (and on earlier). It's a live show that ends very late to begin with, and so starting late means ending even later. The cast and crew might even appreciate his stance since it keeps them from finishing even further into the AM.

[Pete Martell]

I don't follow sports so I had no idea who JJ Watt was - it's been a long time since SNL has had a non-wrestler athlete host (Charles Barkley hosted a few years ago but apparently he was a last-minute replacement). Most athlete hosts are forgettable, but you never know. 

I feel like Ru would have been a better host 5-10 years ago but this could still be fun. 

Definitely not who I was expecting. 

Ru was last on SNL in a 1993 cameo appearance, leading to this iconic shot.

https://www.onesnladay.com/2019/08/25/september-25-1993-charles-barkley-nirvana-s19-e1/

[Just Here]

Quote

I don't follow sports so I had no idea who JJ Watt was

He's Kealia Ohai's fiancé. 😉

 

Watt (IMDb profile) does have some on-screen acting experience, most notably playing the school soccer coach in Bad Moms.  He was also in an Ang Lee film, Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk, as well as an episode of New Girl and a few episodes in an FX comedy, The League (playing himself in both TV shows).

 

Outside of football, he has an active charitable foundation for children and spearheaded the raising of over $37 million for Hurricane Harvey relief (Twitter).

[Pete Martell]

Thanks. I didn't know any of that. The headline about Ohai is pretty cheap (even if it wasn't intended that way); kudos to him for his response. 

[helenamonster]

I've never liked Justin Bieber and I definitely don't like that this show is enabling whatever bizarre psychotic break he seems to be going through by having him on.

[vb68]

Interesting next two hosts who I honestly never would had predicted.

JJ seems like a good guy with all his charity work, and he does have a sense of humor. He's funny on talkshows and the like. I think it was him and Jon Hamm who kept mocking Katy Perry on the NFL Awards show a few years ago for not understanding "offensive player." Yeah, that happened.)  But if he starts talking about leaving his mark on the cast, I would run. LOL

Rupaul will probably be fine.

And as long as Bieber is strictly music and not allowed in any sketches (Oh who am I kidding?), he's easy enough to ignore.  Seriously though, really surprised he's coming back. I totally believe the cast HATED him when he hosted some years ago. I still remember Sudeikis  getting rather vicious mocking him on-air.

[Pete Martell]

Regarding Cecily's new show (as mentioned in the cast discussion thread), I've felt for a while now like this is her last season, particularly as she has mentioned a sketch she really wanted got on the air (the wires sketch in Chance the Rapper's episode), RuPaul hosting on her birthday (which was a big deal for her apparently), etc. 

It feels like it should be the end for AIdy and Kate too, but usually Lorne likes to keep at least one era's departing cast member for transition's sake, if he can. I wonder who it would be. Considering Kate is probably the best known of the trio, maybe her. 

[helenamonster]

They all seem to have a lot of opportunities outside of SNL though. They're all at the point where any contract renewals would probably be on a year-to-year basis to give them easy outs. If I were any of their agents I would demand it.

No matter what Lorne says he wants, I won't be surprised if they're all gone after this season. He does this with female cast members all the time: lets a few carry the show and neglects to build up a stable of reliable newbies to take over when they leave. I think Heidi, Ego, and Chloe are all capable performers*, but none of them are at the Kate/Cecily/Aidy level yet.

*I really don't like Melissa, and the fact that she would be the most tenured woman on the cast if those other three left is...dire.

[Pete Martell]

14 minutes ago, helenamonster said:

They all seem to have a lot of opportunities outside of SNL though. They're all at the point where any contract renewals would probably be on a year-to-year basis to give them easy outs. If I were any of their agents I would demand it.

No matter what Lorne says he wants, I won't be surprised if they're all gone after this season. He does this with female cast members all the time: lets a few carry the show and neglects to build up a stable of reliable newbies to take over when they leave. I think Heidi, Ego, and Chloe are all capable performers*, but none of them are at the Kate/Cecily/Aidy level yet.

*I really don't like Melissa, and the fact that she would be the most tenured woman on the cast if those other three left is...dire.

I feel like Heidi and to a lesser degree Ego have been built up slightly to try to prevent the scenario they had when Kristen Wiig left (where she was the only female cast member to get an in for years and the show was lucky they managed to carry on somewhat seamlessly after she left), but there's been so much focus on Kate/Aidy/Cecily that it does make the changeover harder. They'll also have to start rebuilding the male side soon-ish, as I think Pete, Beck and Kyle will be leaving (it feels like Pete has already left...), Kenan's sitcom is still in the pipeline, Mikey is writing for Disney+, etc. And Che and Jost have been at Update for six seasons, which is a long time. Next season could be a huge year of change. 

I don't mind Melissa, but I don't see her ever having a major role on the show. 

[JZL]

Heidi seems to be the heiress apparent.  I'd wager she's getting more screen time than Kate lately.  I like Melissa but agreed she's likely to be of limited utility.  Chloe and Ego are still mostly window-dressing so far, but show promise.  Lorne should give them more to do. 

[vb68]

I think it's past time for Issa Rae to host.

Hopefully she will when her show starts it's new season, in April I think.

[helenamonster]

23 hours ago, JZL said:

Heidi seems to be the heiress apparent.  I'd wager she's getting more screen time than Kate lately.  I like Melissa but agreed she's likely to be of limited utility.  Chloe and Ego are still mostly window-dressing so far, but show promise.  Lorne should give them more to do. 

Agreed. I can see Heidi seamlessly stepping into the high-profile female cast member role once Kate, Aidy, and Cecily bounce. And I think Ego won't be too far behind in joining her. Chloe still hasn't even finished her first season, so she's got room to grow. But Melissa is never going to lead this show. She's just not.

[vb68]

6 minutes ago, helenamonster said:

Agreed. I can see Heidi seamlessly stepping into the high-profile female cast member role once Kate, Aidy, and Cecily bounce. And I think Ego won't be too far behind in joining her.

A year and a half in, Ego seems more comfortable to me than Sasheer ever did.  Ego is really starting to shine. 

[Phishbulb]

22 hours ago, vb68 said:

I think it's past time for Issa Rae to host.

Hopefully she will when her show starts it's new season, in April I think.

She also has TWO movies coming out in the next few months ("The Photograph" and "The Lovebirds"), so yes.

[Pete Martell]

Apparently Colin suggests in his upcoming memoir that he may leave post-election, to try new things. 

https://variety.com/2020/tv/news/colin-jost-memoir-saturday-night-live-departure-1203507648/

[helenamonster]

Lol bye.

[ParadoxLost]

I find it interesting that David Byrne is the musical guest the week Mulaney is hosting.

That must have been Mulaney's idea given that he got Byrne to do a song for Sack Lunch Bunch.  I wonder if SNL just trusts his hosting (and writing and ability to resurrect never made it to air skits) so much that they let him do whatever he want including picking the musical guest. Has there ever been a Broadway show that merited a SNL musical guest spot before?

I'm really looking forward to this one.

[OutOfTheQuestion]

While Byrne will surely be performing American Utopia stuff with his band, it's not really a "Broadway show" per se.  I mean, sure, it's on Broadway, but it's also a concert performed by a known musical legend.  It's not like SNL had Lin-Manuel and company on as musical guests during Hamilton's heyday or something.

btw, American Utopia is one of the best concert experiences I've ever seen.  Just an incredible show.

[Pete Martell]

On 2/24/2020 at 7:44 PM, ParadoxLost said:

I find it interesting that David Byrne is the musical guest the week Mulaney is hosting.

That must have been Mulaney's idea given that he got Byrne to do a song for Sack Lunch Bunch.  I wonder if SNL just trusts his hosting (and writing and ability to resurrect never made it to air skits) so much that they let him do whatever he want including picking the musical guest. Has there ever been a Broadway show that merited a SNL musical guest spot before?

I'm really looking forward to this one.

The Pirates of Penzance were the MG for David Carradine's 1980 episode. That was with a different producer of course.

I get the feeling from Mulaney having to reschedule a gig that he may have been asked last minute about hosting. If so then he's doing the show a favor, so along with that he may have had more power to ask for what he wanted - and since Byrne has appeared on SNL several times, it wasn't someone they would be gambling with. 

[vb68]

Expect Elizabeth Warren to get her "Hallelujah moment" saying goodbye.

I also expect Sudeikis to be back in full force this week.

It's weird to think after this show that we only have two blocks of shows (3 shows each, so 6 episodes total) left for the whole season.

[Pete Martell]

2 hours ago, vb68 said:

Expect Elizabeth Warren to get her "Hallelujah moment" saying goodbye.

I also expect Sudeikis to be back in full force this week.

It's weird to think after this show that we only have two blocks of shows (3 shows each, so 6 episodes total) left for the whole season.

This would be a good time to try to recast Biden with a cast member, given Jason's sporadic appearances this season, but I don't think they'll do it.

Unless Warren herself appears on the show for a cameo I hope we don't  have to see Kate's version again, but...yeah, we will.

[OutOfTheQuestion]

Counting John Krasinski, the ratio of male hosts to female hosts this season is up to 12 to 4, which seems really lopsided.

[Pete Martell]

3 hours ago, OutOfTheQuestion said:

Counting John Krasinski, the ratio of male hosts to female hosts this season is up to 12 to 4, which seems really lopsided.

Last season had 7 female hosts. They also had only had 4 female hosts up to this point, but the host at the end of March was another woman, whereas we won't be getting any until April. With 6 more episodes there's still a decent chance to match the 7 female hosts from last season, but the sheer length of time (mid-December to April) has been jarring. There's also been, I think, something of a chilling effect on the male cast with so many male hosts, particularly in a row, particularly when we're in era where the host appears in nearly every sketch and every pre-tape. It feels like Alex has been shut out most of the season, and Mikey has also taken a big backseat in the second half, while it felt like Beck sort of did in the first half. And if Pete hadn't been so MIA most of the time by his own choice that would have been another man fighting for airtime. 

I don't think the current male cast is as weak as many say it is, but with the number of men hosting this season, and the number of men who absolutely dominated their episodes no less (Driver, Mulaney, Harbour, etc.), maybe Lorne agrees with those criticisms...

[madpsych78]

Now that Biden has formally begun the process of selecting a VP, it could be funny if SNL did a sketch based off of the Bachelor, but with Biden as the Bachelor.