SNL Cast Shakeup: Devon Walker Leaves After 3 Seasons
Another one bites the dust at 30 Rock. SNL comedian Devon Walker, after a three-season run on Saturday Night Live, has decided to call it quits. Walker posted on Instagram, comparing his time on the iconic sketch show to a relationship that had run its course. Walker candidly dropped the bombshell with a simple caption: “me and baby broke up.” Honestly, it’s the kind of breakup announcement we can all get behind – short, a little cryptic, and straight to the point.
Devon Walker Says Leaving SNL is “Good News”
Walker did later clarify in an Instagram story, “just to be clear, this is good news!! it was just time for me to do something different,” saving us all from the “quit or fired?” speculation game. Apparently, SNL has been making changes ahead of its 51st season. Hmm.
Devon Walker’s Candid Take on His SNL Exit
Walker didn’t shy away from the messy details. He likened jobs in the entertainment industry to “a bunch of little marriages,” noting that some last, but most are “permanent until they’re not.”
It’s a surprisingly profound take on the fleeting nature of Hollywood gigs. He admitted his three-year “marriage” to SNL was indeed a mixed bag. Some moments were “really cool,” while others were, in his own words, “toxic as hell.” Ouch. But through the “dysfunction,” he said, they “made a f–ked up lil family.” It seems the SNL experience is just as intense and emotionally turbulent as we’ve always imagined.
This refreshingly honest take paints a picture of a high-pressure environment where creative highs are paired with soul-crushing lows. For Walker, three years was the magic number – just long enough to learn, grow, and figure out it was time to leave.
He’s not just leaving; he’s moving on with a plan. First up? A trip to Japan. When he returns, he’s ditching comedy for a bit to pursue “a prestige drama,” ideally co-starring the legendary Julianne Moore. A bold move, but we respect the ambition.
SNL Enters Its Post-50s Shake-Up Era
Walker’s departure isn’t happening in a vacuum. It comes just as SNL mastermind Lorne Michaels has started dropping hints about a significant cast and crew shake-up for the upcoming 51st season. After a monumental 50th season focused on celebrating its legacy with returning alumni, it seems Michaels is ready to clean house and reinvent the show. Walker is simply the first domino to fall.
His exit feels less like a dramatic firing and more like a mutually-decided breakup. He’s stepping away on his own terms, leaving the grueling SNL weekly sketch cycle behind to explore new and different creative avenues.
Devon gave his thanks, shouted out to his friends, and set his sights on a new horizon. It’s a graceful exit from a show known for its brutal pace and cutthroat nature. As SNL gears up for a new era, it seems Devon has decided to start his own. And we’ll be watching to see if he lands that role with Julianne Moore. No pressure at all.
What’s Next for SNL?
Lorne Michaels told Puck News on the last SNL season that he didn’t want to have any issues in running its 50th year. He said:
I wanted people coming back and being part of [the 50th season],” he told the outlet. “So, Kate [McKinnon] hosted, Kristen [Wiig] and Maya [Rudolph] came back for it … that meant there couldn’t be those kinds of disruptions or anything that was going to take the focus off [the 50th season].
While that may have been a good strategy for SNL‘s anniversary year, we hope Michaels and his team of writers and producers has some new, fresh skits for next season. The show, known for its irreverent humor, regularly threw shade at pretty much everyone.
Some of the skits in most recent years, though amusing, often poked fun at only one side of the political spectrum. Will we get SNL back as a true equal opportunity offender or is it dust-biting time for the long-running show? We’ll have to wait and see what next season brings.
