Kenan Thompson

SNL sailed from the 40th anniversary into Season 41 rather smoothly, though the waters roughened in recent weeks with the departures of Taran Killam, Jay Pharoah and Jon Rudnitsky. Thankfully, it’s clear skies ahead for Season 42, as the rest of the beloved cast will be staying aboard. Sailing metaphors!

At long last, SNL’s momentous 2015 seems to be drawing to a close, ending on a high note with Sisters stars and series alum Tina Fey and Amy Poehler acting as dual hosts alongside Bruce Springsteen. The first promos see the pair retake 30 Rock with SNL’s reigning senior, though things seem to have gone downhill, per Poehler.

We’re all a bit relieved to have the absurdity of Donald Trump’s SNL hosting gig behind us, and the odds are ever in our favor with Elizabeth Banks’ hosting debut. The Hunger Games star forms an alliance with Kenan Thompson for her first SNL promo, and only one of them leaves alive.

For as much hype as SNL garnered in returning so many past alum for its 40th anniversary special, Eddie Murphy’s long-awaited return seemed curiously brief. Norm MacDonald since explained that the revered comedian had declined to portray Bill Cosby in the all-star Celebrity Jeopardy sketch, and now Murphy himself explains the decision.

The ‘90s kid in all of us winces a bit whenever word spreads of bad blood between Kenan Thompson and Kel Mitchell, the former graduating from Nickelodeon to SNL, and the latter far less visible. Thankfully, Jimmy Fallon has taken our order, reuniting the pair for another “Good Burger” sketch on last night’s Tonight Show.

Every year at SNL brings with it a bit of turnover, and current senior member Kenan Thompson has frequently become a target of speculation. We've one week left in the iconic 40th season, though Kenan himself assures that his SNL exit lies much further in the future.

Pranks! Wacky, silly, fun pranks! Destructive, horrible, embarrassing pranks. On last night’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!, former Saturday Night Live star Will Forte reminisced about a prank he once played on co-star Kenan Thompson, a generally benign (but charmingly so) prank that saw him and Kristen Schaal playing around in Thompson’s dressing room when he wasn’t present and then sending him pictures of the mayhem. This is a classic prank. What could possibly go wrong?

This past weekend’s ‘SNL’ installment with ‘The Voice’ coach Blake Shelton pulling double duty proved every bit as exciting as it sounded (read: not), but what better way to restore the 40th anniversary season’s tempo than with ‘Whiplash’ master J.K. Simmons himself? Watch Simmons and Kenan brave the cold and bitter loneliness in this weekend’s ‘SNL’ promos!

The ‘SNL’ digital shorts may have begun as scrappy little projects fueled by random jokes and silliness, but recent years have seen them evolve into so much more. When they’re at their best, they play more like little short films that feel like complete entities. When they’re at their absolute best, they make you forget that you’re watching a 40 year-old comedy sketch show in the first place. Last night’s digital short felt more, alive, funny, and complete than just about any actual “live” sketch.

With the latest ‘SNL’ arriving only 10 days from Christmas, a holiday sketch was inevitable. And while it must have been tempting to go down the “family dinner goes horribly wrong” route (which is basically sketch comedy 101), the show decided to go slightly more bizarre. Thanks to his brand new music video, the entire world now knows the existence of Sump’n Claus.