Saturday Night Live cast shortened
According to E! Online, there has been confirmation from NBC that regulars Chris Parnell, Horatio Sanz and Finesse Mitchell will not be returning to the late night staple we all know as Saturday Night Live (SNL).
The non-announcement was made by simply omitting the players' names from a press release touting the start of the show's 32nd season, though a rep for the network denied there was any bad blood between the MIA cast and producer Lorne Michaels or that their departure was the result of a firing.
"I believe there were mutual choices made," NBC rep Marc Liepis told E! Online. "When you're on the show for eight years, I don't think you look at it as a firing."
Parnell, Sanz and Mitchell, who have been part of the show for eight years, eight years and three years, respectively, have yet to comment on their non-return, though if past remarks are any indication, the decision to part hardly seems mutual.
"I haven't been approached with anything that's led me to believe I won't be back," Sanz told the Chicago Sun-Times less than a month ago. "I definitely enjoy the job and would like to stick with it."
As for Mitchell, his alleged firing is the most surprising, as speculation up until now has pegged fellow cast member Kenan Thompson, who will return this fall, as the third man out. Darrell Hammond, whose 11 seasons on the show mark a series best, is also in the clear, returning to the show despite murmurs he, too, may have performed his last impression.
Tina Fey and Rachel Dratch announced over the summer they were leaving the show to star in the NBC comedy "30 Rock," set behind the scenes at a SNL-like variety show produced by Michaels that costars fellow SNL alum Tracy Morgan.
According to NBC's Web site, Parnell, whose "Lazy Sunday" rap with Andy Samberg was one of last season's highlights, is currently shooting the sitcom "Thick & Thin" for the Peacock net. As for Mitchell and Sanz, there is no information on new projects.
Even though SNL will be without five of its familiar faces in the fall line-up there are no current plans to fill the gap. According to a statement from NBC, no new regular players have been added to the late night mix, though several of the remaining funnymen and women will see various changes to their onscreen roles.
Fey's departure paves the way for a new face to join Amy Poehler at the "Weekend Update" desk and while no successors have been formally named, early reports peg Jason Sudeikis and Seth Meyers as the top candidates. Meyers also returns as head writer for the show, a title he previously shared with Fey.