Punkie Johnson leaving Saturday Night Live ahead of season 50
For most of the past several weeks, we had hoped that Saturday Night Live season 50 would see the entire cast from season 49 return. However, that is officially not going to be the case.
In a post on Instagram, Punkie Johnson (who has been around for the past several seasons) indicated that she will not be coming back. She also indicated that there is no controversy or hurt feelings over the exit:
“After four seasons, I will not be returning to SNL for the 50th … It’s no bad blood, it’s no bridges burnt, it’s no hard feelings. [Doing this show] was a dream I didn’t even know I could achieve. I was part of one of the most elite institutions in comedy, and I’m so grateful for it… but my time there has come to an end.”
Our initial reaction to this is of course sadness, mostly because we’d want everyone on Saturday Night Live to be there for such an enormous milestone. Yet, we’re also aware of the fact that the show never made the best use of Punkie’s talents, as she was often reduced to just a sketch or two per episode. We have certainly seen performers there before get somewhat overlooked, only to shine in much more substantial roles elsewhere. Perhaps the most recent example of this is Tim Robinson, who was able to parlay a short stint over to his Netflix show I Think You Should Leave. We are 100% hoping for the best for her moving forward.
As for whether or not there are going to be any other departures ahead of season 50, we’ll have to wait and see. Personally, we’d be shocked if there is more than one addition. The cast is already pretty huge, and it also feels like it would benefit the show the most to focus on them. Also, there are sure to be a lot of cameos and callbacks based on where we are at present in the series’ run.
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What do you most want to see moving into Saturday Night Live season 50?
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