A Little Bit of This, A Little Bit of That—That’s Classic SNL

If there’s one thing Lorne Michaels has learned over his 50 years shepherding Saturday Night Live, it’s that there’s no pleasing everyone all the time. That’s why you’ll generally find a variety of comedy styles in each 90-minute episode, including topical/political humor, parody, and observational humor. There’s usually a little something for everyone.

With Wednesday’s announcement of not just a single host/musical guest for the season premiere, but rather the hosts/musical guests for the first five episodes of the show’s landmark 50th season, it would seem the show is taking a similar approach. Don’t like week one’s guests? Surely you’ll be excited about one of the upcoming host/guest combos.

One thing’s for sure: they’re all heavy hitters.

Ok, so maybe some people still aren’t totally familiar with Nate Bargatze, but the respected stand-up hosted an edition of the show last season that was very well received. He also has an upcoming holiday special on CBS (of all places), a show that happens to be executive produced by Lorne Michaels.

But the other names on the roster are unquestionably A-list.

On October 19, Michael Keaton, fresh off his starring role in Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, will host. Keaton has hosted three times before (October 30, 1982; November 14, 1992; and April 4, 2015) and has well-respected comedy chops beginning with TV sitcoms and early movies like Night Shift and Mr. Mom.

That was before he started getting Oscar nominations as a “serious” actor, but he’s always been in demand as a go-to late-night guest. (Small TV trivia bit: Keaton was originally cast to play Jack in Lost, but only when the character was supposed to die in the pilot. When ABC decided the show had to keep Jack alive, Keaton withdrew and Matthew Fox played the role for six seasons.)

Ariana Grande is on the schedule for October 12. In addition to being a superstar musician, Grande has proved her comedy chops—not only over multiple appearances on SNL, but also in in her visits with Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show (which, not to be redundant, is also produced by Michaels). Grande is surely going to mention her upcoming starring role in the film version of Wicked, which opens on November 22 and happens to co-star SNL cast member Bowen Yang.

John Mulaney‘s long association with SNL—going back to his days as a writer on the show—has led to an almost annual hosting gig. November 2 will be his sixth time at the helm. He happens to also be heading to Broadway for a show called All In: Comedy About Love, which is written by Simon Rich, who worked alongside Mulaney as a writer on SNL from 2008 to 2011.

And then there’s the premiere week star on September 28: Jean Smart, who just won her third Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series Emmy for Hacks. She will be a first-time host, but she will come better prepared to perform the opening monologue than she might have earlier in her career because she now plays a standup in the series.

Smart’s musical guest will be the crossover artist Jelly Roll, who brings a mix of country and rap, which is just eclectic enough to fit SNL’s status as a place where all sorts of music genres collide.

Coldplay, who have been around since SNL was barely able to drink—at 22—will pair with Bargatze. Yes they’ll have a new album ready for release, Moon Music, which sounds very Coldplay.

Grande isn’t doubling as her own musical guest. Instead she’ll partner with a member of true rock royalty, Stevie Nicks. The former Fleetwood Mac singer is appearing on SNL for the second time after a significant time gap: just a couple months shy of 41 years.

Chappell Roan, who will join Mulaney on November 2, is a fresh name and a hot artist of the moment with a top-selling album for the past two months, The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess. Presumably she will perform at least one of her hit singles: “Good Luck, Babe” and “Hot to Go!”

Then there’s pop superstar Billie Eilish, who’s almost an SNL regular with this fourth appearance. With two Oscars and multiple Grammys already on her shelves, she can likely appear any time she wants to launch a new album—as in this time, with May’s Hit Me Hard and Soft. (Will she mention her recent and widely publicized political endorsement? Maybe—if Lorne allows it.)

I confess to having lost a small bet that the show would bring out the star of the Olympics, Simone Biles, to open the season. But maybe the Summer Games were too far back—or maybe this is going to be an entertainment superstar season.

My next bet is that cameos from SNL names of the past show up with perhaps more regularity this season. They are certainly off to a strong start in that category with Maya Rudolph returning, presumably often, to reprise her Kamala Harris.

I also bet the show does very well in the ratings this season. (That’s one bet I will surely win.)

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