‘Saturday Night Live’: The (possible) future of the featured players

Usually in this spot, we like to discuss the weekend’s new “Saturday Night Live,” and maybe share a new preview featuring the host and musical guest. Unfortunately, NBC is giving us the big squadoosh when it comes to new material here.

So with that in mind, how about focusing on another topic that we always debate this time of year: Which one of the featured players is in danger? There’s a lot of featured players this year, and with there being no rumors surrounding some of the current regulars leaving yet (save for maybe Nasim Pedrad, who’s been mostly gone lately filming “Mulaney”), we have to assume that at least a couple of people could be sent away.

So with this article, we take a look at the fate of all the featured players, weighing their advantages and disadvantages while wondering if they’ve done enough to get another year on the show.

Beck Bennett – He’s almost a lock to stay, and feels almost like the show’s reincarnated version of Jason Sudeikis. He can be crazy characters, but is also a suitable straight man for crazy things to happen around.

Brooks Whelan – We go back and forth on Brooks. We really like him, but it seems like his best character is just being himself. How long can that really register on the show? We’d say that he’s a toss-up.

Colin Jost – Not everyone loves his take on “Weekend Update,” but we feel like he’s getting better. The jury is still out on him for the time being.

John Milhiser – We’d be most worried if we were John, mostly because we can never even remember who he is at this point in the season. That’s probably not a good thing.

Kyle Mooney – Like Beck, we feel good about his chances. He hasn’t necessarily stood out in many sketches, but he’s coming off one of his best pre-tapes of the entire season and has a following for those.

Mike O’Brien – He hasn’t always been a big player on the show, but he feels deeply involved with the show and is well-liked by the cast. All of that, at least to us, suggests that we will probably see more of him.

Noel Wells – We don’t feel as great about Noel now as we did earlier in the season. Most of her impressions, a strong point of hers going into the season, have felt somewhat off. Also, she’s disappeared lately into the background.

Sasheer Zamata – Sasheer is probably safe, much in the way that Colin is and Kate McKinnon was when she was first hired. You’re not bringing someone on at midseason unless you plan to keep them for at least a season and a half.

Who do you want to see on “SNL” for another season? Share below, and click here to watch the most-recent preview featuring Rogen and cast member Aidy Bryant in her promo debut! Also, be sure to sign up to get more TV updates via email courtesy of our CarterMatt Newsletter.

Photo: NBC