‘Saturday Night Live’ adds 3 players for its 42nd season

The comedy pipeline that ranges from Chicago improv training grounds to Saturday Night Live is a familiar one, stretching back to the days when a young Bill Murray graduated from The Second City to SNL. As previously speculated by Vulture, SNL writer Mikey Day will be joining the cast along with Alex Moffat and Melissa Villaseñor. That series – a showcase for the talents of Maya Rudolph and Martin Short – aired six episodes over the summer. Contributing to the writing staff since 2013, Day was the one behind popular sketches like “Star Wars Undercover Boss: Starkiller Base” sketch and the “Dead Poets Society”-inspired “Farewell Mr. Bunting”. All returning SNL cast members are now repertory players (meaning Michael Che, Pete Davidson and Leslie Jones all got promoted). Next is Alex Moffat, who appears to have a background in Chicago comedy theater.

The clear impetus this season is for newer cast members like Beck Bennett, Pete Davidson, and Sasheer Zamata to step up and make a bigger impression among an ensemble that now has only one obvious star (Kate McKinnon). Impressionist, stand-up comedian and actor Villaseñor was a top 16 finalist on Season 6 of America’s Got Talent. It has yet to receive a renewal for a second season.

With Jay Pharoah and Taran Killam being ousted from Saturday Night Live’s upcoming season, it was inevitable that the long-running NBC sketch comedy show would make way for some fresh comic relief.

When the show returns to air next month it’ll be in the midst of Clinton and Donald Trump’s highly anticipated presidential debates.