After 50 seasons on NBC, only 167 people have joined the coveted cast of “Saturday Night Live” with a select few sticking around for 10 or more seasons.
The sketch series has kickstarted several cast members’ careers to a new heights, some so big you may have forgotten they started on the show: Billy Crystal, Robert Downey Jr., Ben Stiller, Laurie Metcalf and Julia Louis-Dreyfuss, to name a few.
But several cast members’ careers are defined by the impact of the sketch show. Kenan Thompson has spent 22 seasons on the show, almost half of the series’ tenure.
Keep reading for a full breakdown of the longest running SNL cast members.
Kenan Thompson
22 seasons (2003-Present)
Thompson is the longest running cast member on SNL with many of his fellow cast members joking that when he leaves the show will end. The comedian has played several iconic characters during his tenure on the show, including Steve Harvey, Bill Cosby and the dinner lobster among many others. Before joining SNL, Thompson starred in his own Nickelodeon show “Kenan & Kel.”
Darrell Hammond
14 seasons (1995-2009)
Hammond is best known for his impressions of former presidents Bill Clinton and Donald Trump, Vice President Al Gore, and dozens of others. Since leaving the show, the actor has appeared in “Unfrosted” and “Scary Movie V.” He returned to SNL take over for Don Pardo as the show’s announcer after Pardo’s death in 2014.
Seth Meyers
13 seasons (2001-2014)
Meyers joined the cast of the sketch show in 2001 and was appointed to head writer by 2005. He auditioned for the Weekend Update desk position in 2004, after Jimmy Fallon had left the show, but lost out to Amy Poehler. Meyers eventually got the gig and hosted Weekend Update from 2006 to 2013.
The comedian now hosts his own late night show, “Late Night with Seth Meyers.”
Colin Jost
12 seasons (2014-Present)
Jost currently serves as a co-anchor for Weekend Update with Michael Che after replacing Seth Meyers’ position. He joined the show as a cast member in 2014 but has written on the show since 2005. The comedian was co-head writer from 2012 to 2015 and then again from 2017 to 2022.
Fred Armisen
11 seasons (2002-2013)
The comedian had an impactful 11-season run on SNL. Armisen originated several iconic characters, including Regine, Garth in a sketch with Kristen Wiig and Stuart also alongside Wiig. The comedian has also appeared in “Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy,” “Easy A” and “Portlandia.”
Michael Che
11 seasons (2014-Present)
The yin to Jost’s yang, Che replaced Cecily Strong on the update desk in 2014. Che and Jost still serve as co-anchors on Weekend Update. Che first joined the show as a writer in 2013 and was promoted to co-head writer of SNL in December 2017.
Al Franken
11 seasons (1977-1980, 1986, 1988-1995)
In total Franken was a cast member on SNL for 11 seasons, returning several times throughout his tenure. He has received 15 Emmy nominations and five Emmy awards for his television writing and producing. In 1995, Franken wrote and starred in the film “Stuart Saves His Family,” which was based on his character Stuart Smalley that he created for the sketch show.
Cecily Strong
11 seasons (2012-2022)
Strong joined the show as a featured player in September 2012. The next season, she became a repertory player and co-anchored Weekend Update segment with Seth Meyers, then with Colin Jost before being replaced with writer Michael Che. The decision was partly her choice to focus more on sketch work. She, Aidy Bryant and Kate McKinnon all left the sketch show at the end of season 48. She currently is the longest running female cast member. She has since starred in the Apple TV+ series “Schmigadoon.”
Kate McKinnon
11 seasons (2012-2022)
McKinnon made a lasting impact during her tenure on the show, best known for her quirky characters that often left her cast members in stitches. The comedian’s imitations include Ellen Degeneres, Hillary Clinton, Rudy Giuliani and Dr. Anthony Fauci. McKinnon has also appeared in “Barbie,” “Ghostbusters” and “Bombshell.”
Aidy Bryant
10 seasons (2012-2022)
Bryant made her debut as a featured player in September 2012 and was promoted to a repertory player during her second season on the show. Some of her most iconic Weekend Update characters include The Worst Lady on an Airplane and Mrs. Claus. Bryant was also well known for her physical comedy choices and her recurring character Melanie, a hyper-flirtatious teenager with an affinity for her friends’ fathers.
Tim Meadows
10 seasons (1991-2000)
During his ten seasons on SNL, Meadows often spoofed famous personalities, including Oprah Winfrey, Michael Jackson, Tiger Woods and O. J. Simpson. One of his original characters “The Ladies’ Man,” a perpetually horny talk-show host who falsely believed himself to be the living definition of what women search for in a man, was adapted into a 2000 film of the same name. Meadows is also known for his role as Principal Duvall in “Mean Girls.”
