Just days after the New York Times announced that Michael Che will replace Cecily Strong behind the Weekend Update desk at Saturday Night Live, Deadline is reporting that 20 year-old stand-up comedian Pete Davidson will join the cast for the 40th season.
Davidson has appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Wild n’ Out, Adam Devine’s House Party, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and was one of Variety‘s 10 Comics to Watch 2014. He will be the only cast addition for this season.
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Davidson will become the fourth-youngest cast member in the 40-year history of SNL. Only Anthony Michael Hall, Eddie Murphy, and Robert Downey Jr. were younger at the time of their hiring. Time will tell if Davidson lasts only one season like Hall and Downey Jr. (the infamous 1985-86 season), or becomes an all-time great like Murphy.
Along with the news of Davidson’s hiring, Deadline also reports that Mike O’Brien, one of seven new cast members last year, will return to the writer’s room this season. O’Brien spent four seasons as a writer before joining the cast. Only Beck Bennett, Kyle Mooney, and Sasheer Zamata remain from last season’s new crop of talent.
The 40th season of Saturday Night Live will premiere on Sept. 27 with Guardians of the Galaxy star Chris Pratt hosting, and Ariana Grande as the musical guest.
