Another one bites the dust.<\/p>\n
Comedian Emil Wakim has announced his exit from \u201cSaturday Night Live\u201d after just one season, marking the latest casualty as creator Lorne Michaels plans to \u201cshake things up\u201d<\/a> with a new cast.<\/p>\n \u201cI won\u2019t be returning to snl next year,\u201d Wakim, 27, began in an Instagram post<\/a> published Wednesday. \u201cIt was a gut punch of a call to get but i\u2019m so grateful for my time there.\u201d<\/p>\n Emil Wakim during New York Fashion Week on February 4, 2025. Getty Images<\/p>\n Wakim announced his exit from \u201cSNL\u201d after just one season in an emotional Instagram post on Wednesday. Instagram\/Emil Wakim<\/p>\n \u201cEvery time i scanned into the building i would think how insane it is to get to work there,\u201d he continued. \u201cIt was the most terrifying, thrilling, and rewarding experience of my life and i will miss it dearly and all the brilliant people that work there that made it feel like a home.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite the \u201cgut punch\u201d of getting fired after just one season on the show, Wakim still thanked Michaels for \u201ctaking a chance on me and changing my life.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI was so lucky to bring some of myself in there and say things i believed in and i\u2019m excited for whatever chapter comes next,\u201d the comedian concluded his message. \u201cHere\u2019s to making more art without compromise.\u201d<\/p>\n Wakim joined \u201cSNL\u201d last year for its landmark 50th season. Instagram\/Emil Wakim<\/p>\n The Chicago native backstage at Studio 8H, where \u201cSNL\u201d is filmed at 30 Rockefeller Plaza. Instagram\/Emil Wakim<\/p>\n Wakim\u2019s \u201cSNL\u201d debut episode came during the Season 50 premiere on Sept. 28. Instagram\/Emil Wakim<\/p>\n Wakim joined the beloved NBC sketch comedy last year for its monumental 50th season<\/a> alongside other newcomers Ashley Padilla and Jane Wickline.<\/p>\n His \u201cSNL\u201d debut episode came during the season premiere on Sept. 28, hosted by actress Jean Smart. The Chicago native\u2019s final appearance was the May 17 season finale, hosted by Scarlett Johansson.<\/a><\/p>\n Besides starring in several sketches, Wakim also appeared alongside \u201cSNL\u201d mainstays Colin Jost and Michael Che during the popular \u201cWeekend Update\u201d segment.<\/p>\n Shortly before Wakim\u2019s announcement, Michaels\u00a0hinted at major cast changes<\/a>\u00a0ahead of the show\u2019s upcoming Season 51 premiere on Oct. 4.<\/p>\n Wakim attends \u201cSNL50: The Anniversary Special\u201d in New York City on February 16, 2025. Getty Images<\/p>\n Lorne Michaels attends the 2023 PEN America Literary Gala at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City on May 18, 2023. Getty Images for PEN America<\/p>\n Michaels backstage during Season 42 of \u201cSNL.\u201d NBCU Photo Bank\/NBCUniversal via Getty Images<\/p>\n During a Puck News interview, the \u201cSNL\u201d creator and producer replied \u201cyes\u201d when asked if he plans to \u201cshake things up\u201d with a new cast.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019ll be announced in a week or so,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Michaels added that he didn\u2019t make any big cast changes last season because he didn\u2019t want to interfere with the show\u2019s landmark\u00a050th anniversary special<\/a>, which aired in February.<\/p>\n \u201cI wanted people coming back and being part of [the 50th season],\u201d he explained. \u201cSo, when\u00a0Kate [McKinnon]\u00a0hosted,\u00a0Kristen [Wiig]\u00a0and\u00a0Maya [Rudolph]\u00a0came back for it \u2026 that meant there couldn\u2019t be those kinds of disruptions or anything that was going to take the focus off [the 50th season].\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd we had an election,\u201d Michaels added.<\/p>\n Michaels attends the opening night performance of Tina Fey\u2019s \u201cMean Girls\u201d at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre on January 5, 2023. Getty Images<\/p>\n Wakim, however, isn\u2019t the first \u201cSNL\u201d cast member to confirm his departure from the program ahead of the new season.<\/p>\n Devon Walker announced his exit<\/a> on Monday night. He compared his job on the sketch comedy to a relationship, and said that it could be \u201ctoxic\u201d at times.<\/p>\n \u201cTo me, jobs in this industry feel like a bunch of little marriages,\u201d Walker, 34, began in an Instagram post<\/a>. \u201cSome of em last for a long time if we\u2019re lucky, but most of them are fleeting. Permanent until they\u2019re not. That\u2019s the deal. You know what it is \u2026 when you sign up.\u201d<\/p>\n Devon Walker attends the \u201cSNL50: The Anniversary Special\u201d at 30 Rockefeller Center in New York City on February 16, 2025. WireImage<\/p>\n Walker announced his exit from \u201cSNL\u201d after three seasons in a social media post on Monday night. Devon Walker\/Instagram<\/p>\n \u201cMe and the show did three years together, and sometimes it was really cool,\u201d he continued. \u201cSometimes it was toxic as hell. But we \u2026 made the most of what it was, even amidst all of the dysfunction. We made a f\u2013ked up lil family.\u201d<\/p>\n Walker, who joined \u201cSNL\u201d as a featured player in 2022 before being promoted to the main cast in 2024, didn\u2019t reveal whether he quit or was fired.<\/p>\n Walker often portrayed NYC Mayor Eric Adams in \u201cSNL\u201d sketches and the popular \u201cWeekend Update\u201d segment. NBC \/ SNL<\/p>\n Writer Celeste Yim, meanwhile,\u00a0revealed their exit from the \u201cgrueling\u201d show in a lengthy message of their own Sunday night.<\/p>\n \u201cAfter five seasons, I\u2019m leaving my job at Saturday Night Live,\u201d Yim, 29,\u00a0wrote on Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cLorne hired me over the phone when I was 23 and the job literally made all of my dreams come true,\u201d they continued, \u201cBUT it was also grueling and I slept in my office every week.\u201d<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t