Saturday Night Live

:SNL redirects here. For other uses of SNL, see SNL (disambiguation).

Cast

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Current repertory players

• Darrell Hammond (1995–Present)
• Chris Parnell (1998–Present)
• Horatio Sanz (1998–Present)
• Rachel Dratch (1999–Present)
• Maya Rudolph (2000–Present)
• Tina Fey (2000–Present)
• Seth Meyers (2001–Present)
• Amy Poehler (2001–Present)
• Fred Armisen (2002–Present)
• Will Forte (2002–Present)
• Finesse Mitchell (2003–Present)
• Kenan Thompson (2003–Present)

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Current featured players

• Jason Sudeikis (2005–Present)
• Andy Samberg (2005–Present)
• Bill Hader (2005–Present)

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For a full list of past and present cast, see Saturday Night Live cast.

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Notable tenures

Although SNL has an often rapid turnover of supporting players (many of whom have appeared for only one season or less), some performers have had long tenures with the show. Few have broken the eight-year barrier. Among the longest serving repertory players are:

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• Phil Hartman (8 seasons: October 1986–May 1994)
• Kevin Nealon (9 seasons: October 1986–May 1995)
• Tim Meadows (9½ seasons: February 1991–May 2000)
• Darrell Hammond (11 seasons and counting: September 1995– )

Cast member deaths

Although SNL is well-known as the launchpad for many successful careers, several cast members have died young:

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• 1982: John Belushi was the first casualty from drug abuse
• 1989: Gilda Radner died after a year-long battle with ovarian cancer
• 1994: Danitra Vance (a one-season cast member) died of breast cancer
• 1994: Michael O'Donoghue (one of the original writers and featured players) who long suffered from severe chronic migraine headaches, died of a cerebral hemorrhage
• 1997: Chris Farley died from drug abuse
• 1998: Phil Hartman was the victim of a murder-suicide by his wife

Contracts

SNL received some negative publicity in 1999 when it was leaked that, henceforth, actors joining the show would have to agree in their five-to-six year contract that, upon request, they would act in up to three movies by SNL Films, for fees of US$75,000, US$150,000, and then US$300,000; and also that, upon request, they would leave SNL and act in an NBC sitcom for up to an additional six years. This appeared to be a reaction to former cast members like Adam Sandler and Mike Myers going on to movie stardom.

Related Topics:
SNL Films - NBC - Adam Sandler - Mike Myers

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Some agents and managers characterized these long-term contracts as involuntary servitude, saying that almost any young, undiscovered comic would immediately agree to any given set of exploitative contractual restrictions for the opportunity to launch their careers via the show. NBC publicly defended the new contracts, saying that SNL was doing a service to young comics by launching so many careers.

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It was reported in 1999 that the starting salary for SNL cast members was US$5,000 per episode.

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