SNL adds five featured players for Season 51, Ben Marshall promoted

NBC announced Tuesday that five new comedians will join Saturday Night Live as featured players for the program's 51st season, part of a sweeping cast refresh following a string of recent departures. Ben Marshall, already a writer on the show and a member of the comedy trio Please Dont Destroy, will be elevated to on camera cast status, and newcomers Tommy Brennan, Jeremy Culhane, Kam Patterson and Veronika Slowikowska will join the roster. Season 51 is set to premiere live on Oct. 4 on NBC and Peacock.

The additions come after several cast members and writers announced exits in recent weeks. Devon Walker, Michael Longfellow and Emil Wakim confirmed on social media that they will not return. Multiple outlets also reported that longtime performer Heidi Gardner is leaving, although neither she nor NBC has publicly confirmed her departure. Other departures among writers and contributors have been disclosed as well, with at least one member of the Please Dont Destroy trio, John Higgins, saying he will leave the SNL writing staff while Martin Herlihy is reported to remain a writer.

Marshall joined the show as a writer in 2021 and has appeared in popular digital shorts produced by...