"Don't get a cushion": Ex-SNL stars open about being dropped out by the hit NBC show

NBC's hit late-night live sketch comedy show, SNL, is getting a major cast shakeup, with fresh faces joining the cast and several familiar faces bidding farewell. Tommy Brennan, Jeremy Culhane, Veronica Slowikowska, Kam Patterson, and Ben Marshall (upped to main cast member) are among the new faces joining SNL. But do you know some of the former favorites are leaving the show?

Ahead of the SNL Season 51 premiere, the members who have announced their departure from the show include Ego Nwodim, John Higgins, Heidi Garderner, Devon Walker, Michael Longfellow, and Emil Walkin. Just a night before the premiere, the show's former cast members came together for a party hosted by Punkie Johnson, who left after Season 49, at the posh Manhattan club. Among the attendees were Garderner, Walker, Longfellow, Higgins, Wakim, Molly Kearneyand, and Chloe Troast.

Speaking to People, Johnson and Troast, who were both terminated from SNL, revealed how difficult it was for them to overcome it. Troast noted,

"You don't get a cushion when you fall."

Being terminated from a job, especially when you're under the scrutiny of the media, isn't easy to deal with, especially for Troast, who was part of the show for only one season (SNL 49). Chloe Troast revealed that during he lowest point, her friends and family members supported her. She added,

"Even before the show, they were the ones that were a guiding light, and so then that's what I looked to after. And I feel like without that, I don't know where I would be one year out, to be honest."

Continue reading to know more.

Punkie Johnson on being terminated from NBC's live sketch comedy show, SNL

The host of the 'farewell' party also had something to say about being terminated after four seasons. Punkie Johnson joined SNL as a featured player in Season 46 in 2020, and she was promoted to a regular cast member in Season 48 in 2022. However, ahead of Season 50, she declared that she would be leaving the late-night sketch comedy show.

Speaking to People, she explained that being terminated from the show was one thing, but the constant pressure of being asked what's next was overbearing. She explained,

"It just put the pressure on you because everybody always like, 'Yo, what's next? What's next?' So you feel like you have to go do the next big thing,"

Describing SNL as a 'different monster, different breed,' she continued,

"It's very hard to understand a place like that. They just throw you in the water — you better know how to swim. They don't give you no life jacket."

She further noted that she took some time to adjust to the sudden departure and to figure out what's next for her. As the wise saying goes Things that don't break you make you stronger. Troast added that her time in SNL has prepared her to face any challenges in the industry.

Among the ones returning for Season 51 are Kenan Thompson, Colin Jost, Michael Che, Chloe Fineman, Bowen Yang, Marcello Hernandez, Mikey DayJames Austin Johnson, Sarah Sherman, Andrew Dismukes, Ashley Padilla, Jane Wickline, to name a few.

Also read: How much do SNL cast members make per episode? Real amount revealed and fans can’t digest it

Trending

Follow SoapCentral for more such updates.

×

Was this article helpful?

Thank You for feedback