‘Saturday Night Live!’ Shares 1st Look at Season 51 Hosts & Musical Guests

Last September, NBC’s “Saturday Night Live!” launched its landmark 50th season, welcoming stars like Paul Mescal, Martin Short and Lady Gaga to deliver stellar (and hilarious) opening monologues while musical guests like Jelly Roll, Elton John and Brandi Carlisle serenaded the live studio audience with their chart-topping hits. All in all, the milestone season went off without a hitch, earning the sketch comedy series the award for Outstanding Variety Special (Live) at the 2025 Emmy Awards on Sunday, September 14. 

Now, after a major cast shake up, “Saturday Night Live!” is just weeks away from making its season 51 debut! In anticipation of the series’ return on Saturday, October 4, SNL has officially revealed the line-up of celebrity hosts and special musical guests that will grace the NBC Headquarters at Studio 8H for the season’s first three episodes.

Meet the 1st Hosts & Musical Guests of SNL Season 51

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In an Instagram post teasing the upcoming season, NBC confirmed that Puerto Rican singer-songwriter Bad Bunny (also known as Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio) will return to SNL to host season 51’s premiere episode on Saturday, October 4. The rapper’s upcoming appearance will act as a follow up to his season 49 SNL debut, where Benito served as both host and musical guest on the season’s second episode in 2023. 

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Bad Bunny will be joined in the premiere by special musical guest, Doja Cat. 

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“Parks and Recreation” star and former SNL cast member Amy Poehler will take over hosting duties for the season’s second episode on Saturday, October 11. Marking her third appearance as host, Poehler will undoubtedly reprise some of her iconic SNL characters – including her “Weekend Update” anchor role – throughout the episode. 

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The series veteran will be joined by SNL newcomer ROLE MODEL as the episode’s special musical guest. The 28-year-old singer-songwriter, also known as Tucker Harrington Pillsbury, is known for his chart-topping bedroom pop tracks like “Sally, When The Wine Runs Out” and “The Longest Goodbye.”

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Episode 3 will see pop superstar Sabrina Carpenter play double-duty as both host and musical guest. While the “Espresso” singer cameod in a skit during the “SNL50” anniversary special earlier this year, her appearance on the Saturday, October 18, episode will mark her hosting debut. 

Who Else Is on the SNL Cast for Season 51? 

News of the season’s first hosts and musical guests comes just weeks after the full cast reveal for SNL aeason 51 revealed major shake-ups with five former comedians leaving and five new voices taking to the stage. 

While stars like Devon Walker, Emil Wakim, Michael Longfellow, Heidi Gardner and Ego Nwodim will not return for the upcoming season, their places in the cast will be filled by newcomers like “Please Don’t Destory” comedian Ben Marshall, Tommy Brennan, Jeremy Culhane, Kam Patterson and Veronika Slowikowska. 

The fledgling comedians will join returning core cast members like Bowen Yang, Kenan Thompson, Colin Jost, Michael Che, Chloe Fineman, Mikey Day, Andrew Dismukes, Sarah Sherman, James Austin Johnson, Marcello Hernandez, Ashley Padilla and Jane Wickline on the upcoming season. 

Though fans and cast members alike have been torn by the cast changes, longtime showrunner Lorne Michaels, 80, warned of an incoming restructuring for SNL before the new cast was announced. 

“Saturday Night Live!” season 51 premieres Saturday, October 4, at 11:30 p.m. Eastern time on NBC. 

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