As SNL brings its summer Weekend Update to a close, we have our first official Season 43 host. Hide your replicants, as Blade Runner 2049 star and returning guest Ryan Gosling will host the late September premiere, joined by an iconic New York musical guest.
We thought it down to the wire when word broke before the SNL finale that Vanessa Bayer would join Bobby Moynihan in leaving after Season 42, but it seems another departure went entirely without notice. Reports confirm Sasheer Zamata also took her final bow with this past Saturday’s finale, joining at least two others.
It made sense of SNL to hire Melissa McCarthy for a fifth hosting gig, rather than rely on a weekly Sean Spicer impression. Nonetheless, our first live coast-to-coast SNL show managed to coax McCarthy’s Spicer out for Easter, and with an intriguing twist at that.
SNL is having a banner year with its political sketches, but there’s no overlooking the absence of past favorites Jay Pharoah and Taran Killam. Pharoah in particular says the sketch comedy series had him in an “impression box,” and even had cast members commenting that he was undervalued.
If perhaps SNL seemed to be sleeping on the job with its two-hosts-per-month in 2017, they had good reason. Not only have the final four hosts been announced, including Jimmy Fallon, Melissa McCarthy and The Rock, but shows will air live across the country for the first time in history.
If you thought the cord-cutters’ market was aggressive before, just wait until you get a load of YouTube TV. The online video staple announced the full scope of its live TV bundle, complete with unlimited cloud DVR and a moderate monthly subscription fee.
We may have seen the last of Key & Peele’s famous anger translation sketch with Keegan-Michael Key’s Luther and Jordan Peele’s Obama, but don’t expect either to give up the ghost for good. Peele briefly brought Obama back for a Late Night With Seth Meyers appearance, albeit without needing the filter that Luther provides.
Once upon a time, Alec Baldwin thought he might get to retire his SNL rendition of Donald Trump, as the world moved on with a Clinton presidency. Now, over a month past the election and three appearances since, Baldwin reveals not only a surprisingly small takehome for the role, but also the likelihood of a regular presence going forward.
The stars of NBC’s Will & Grace went surprisingly all-out for a recent reunion video breaking down the 2016 election, practically staging an entire new episode in the process. Naturally, the viral video made NBC see dollar signs, and an official Will & Grace reunion series is now in development.
Fans have remained loyal to NBC’s Grimm ‘til the last, propelling the supernatural cop drama through a whopping six seasons on Friday nights, but all fairy tales end sooner or later. So it is, that NBC confirms Grimm Season 6 will mark the end for all your favorite Wesen.
If ever you thought days telling those Snapchatting kids to get off your lawn were coming to a middle, NBC has bad news. Not only will shows like SNL and E! News soon have their own Snapchat series, The Voice will even start using it as an audition tool.