Yesterday, new SNL featured player Brooks Wheelan announced he’d been fired, but that’s not the only change to the long-running sketch show’s cast this season. Deadline reports that fellow new featured players Noël Wells and John Milhiser will not be returning in the fall as SNL bosses have opted not to renew their contracts. Deadline adds that discussions are underway about Mike O’Brien’s future on the show. O’Brien, who was an SNL writer for four seasons before being bumped up to featured player status this past season, could either wind up remaining in the cast or be bumped back to the writing staff.
The Deadline report also confirms that Nasim Pedrad, who is a regular on former SNL writer John Mulaney’s new Lorne Michaels-produced Fox sitcom Mulaney, will also be departing SNL; Pedrad previously said she’s unlikely to return, but now it’s official. Pedrad joined the cast in 2009, completing five seasons on the show.
