Mary Ellen Matthews/NBC via Getty SeveralSaturday Night Livestars and writers will not return for the new season. Longtime cast member Heidi Gardner and Devon Walker are amongst those who won't be back at Studio 8H. SNLseason 51 premieres Saturday, Oct. 4. A majorSaturday Night Livecast shakeup is underway ahead of the legendary NBC sketch show's upcoming season 51. Although cast turnover has been a given atSNLsince the early days, the last couple seasons have been fairly steady as the Emmy-winning show geared up for its celebratory 50th anniversary season, including not a single departure during or immediately following its May finale, bucking fan expectation. So when numerous cast members suddenly started announcing their exits this week, even formerSNLstar Punkie Johnson expressed surpriseover the turn of events. But the changes are in alignment withSNLheadLorne Michaels' previous promise thatmajor cast changes would come ahead of the new season, only guaranteeing the safety of one cast member by name. Michaels answered in the affirmative when asked byPuckif he planned to "shake things up" with a new cast, explaining that he hadn't wanted "those kind of disruptions" to "take the focus off" thecelebratory 50th season. Follow along below as we round up who is confirmed to be leaving the cast, who is for sure sticking around, and whose future is still anyone's guess. Cast members leavingSaturday Night Liveahead of season 51 are a mix of people whose contract options were not picked up and those choosing to leave. NBC is generally gracious enough to let departing performers announce themselves before sending out a press release announcing the full cast closer to the season premiere, though some choose to stay mum. First a note about the apparent inner workings at Studio 8H. Although there are exceptions over the years,typicallya cast member is hired under a seven-year contract and spends their first two years as a featured player. The show can promote them earlier than that, as was the case with people likeBill Hader,Andy Samberg,Kristen Wiig, andCecily Strongin the past, or let them go after just one year, as has happened with season 50 hire Emil Wakim, and past single-season cast members likeJenny Slate,Sarah Silverman,Rob Riggle, andmore recently Chloe TroastandAristotle Athari. Will Heath/NBC via Getty More often, a featured player is given two years to essentially prove themselves on the show before being let go or promoted to the main — a.k.a. repertory — cast. From there, they are locked in for another five years, although the show still has the choice to not pick up their option each year — meaning they cannot leave on their own, but they could get cut ahead of any new season. Some cast members who are desperate to leave early can try to work it out with the show to not have their option picked up, while some folks also negotiate new contracts after their initial seven years are up, as has been the case with many stars in recent years. But those behind-the-scenes decisions and negotiations are not made public, so fans don't always know the circumstances around someone's departure. Heck, sometimes even the cast member is not clear on what happened as is the case withChris Parnell, who wasfired and rehired in the early aughts. So far, four cast members are known to not be returning for season 51. Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty EW confirmed longtime cast memberHeidi Gardnerwill not be back after eight seasons. Gardner joined the show for season 43 in 2017 and was the longest-serving female cast member on season 50. Gardner was a solid utility player in sketches, who also played a variety of memorable "Weekend Update" characters, including Angel, a.k.a. Every Boxer's Girlfriend From Every Movie About Boxing Ever, teen film critic Bailey Gismert, and Goop employee Baskin Johns. She was also a driving force ingetting Travis Kelce to host the show in in 2023. Taylor Hill/FilmMagic Devon Walker revealed on Aug. 25 that he would not be returningafter three seasons onSNL.Walker joined the cast in 2022 for season 48. "Me and the show did three years together, and sometimes it was really cool. Sometimes it was toxic as hell," he wrote onInstagram. "But we did what we made the most of what it was, even amidst all of the dysfunction. We made a f‑‑‑ed up lil family." Taylor Hill/FilmMagic The day after Walker's announcement,Michael Longfellow opened up about not being asked back for season 51.Like Walker, Longfellow was hired for season 48 in 2022. "Will not be returning for a 4th season at SNL. Wish I was but, so it goes," he wrote onInstagram. "It was the best three years of my life so far. I feel nothing but gratitude for the experience and everyone there." Taylor Hill/FilmMagic Featured playerEmil Wakim announced on Aug. 27 that he'd been let go. Wakim,SNL's first Lebanese American cast member, was hired just last year at the start of season 50. "It was a gut punch of a call to get but i'm so grateful for my time there," hepostedon social media. "I was so lucky to bring some of myself in there and say things I believed in and I'm excited for whatever chapter comes next." The only cast member Michaels confirmed would return to Studio 8H isJames Austin Johnson, who will continue impersonating PresidentDonald Trump, according to the show boss. Performers whose season 51 statuses have not yet been revealed include featured playersAshley Padilla and Jane Wickline, repertory cast membersMikey Day,Andrew Dismukes,Chloe Fineman,Marcello Hernández,Ego Nwodim,Sarah Sherman,Bowen Yang, and the show's longest-serving cast member,Kenan Thompson, plus longtime "Weekend Update" anchorsMichael CheandColin Jost. It is also not yet known if unofficial cast members Please Don't Destroy — made up of comedy trio Ben Marshall, John Higgins, and Martin Herlihy — will return to create and star in digital videos as they have since season 47. Speaking to EW back in May, Yang played coy when asked about his display of emotion at the season 50 finale, in which he and Sherman could be seen hugging closely, both on the verge of tears. "Every finale at goodnights something leaves my body because I'm just relieved from all that happened in that season and this was a big one," the six-season cast member said. "We went through a lot, so many fun memories. I think that was probably what was registering. I was just like, oh, I need to savor these moments before I don't have them anymore." When asked directly if that meant he would not be not coming back for season 51, Yang dodged the question directly. "No, we're not doing that," he laughed. Although it is rare for cast to officially announce their return for a new season, given the current unrest, it wouldn't be surprising to see some stars at least hint at it on social media in the coming weeks. Until then, we wait... Will Heath/NBC via Getty Two Emmy-nominatedSNLwriters will also be missing from the new season. Celest Yimwas the first staffer to officially announce their exit after Michaels' turnover remarks when theyrevealedtheir departure on Sunday, Aug. 24. Yim, who was hired at the beginning of season 46 in 2020, was the first out nonbinary member of theSNLwriting staff, Rosebud Baker, who joined the show in 2022 during season 47, announced in an Instagram Story that she would not be back. Amid the flood of headlines about stars exiting the show,Brooklyn Nine-NinestarChelsea Peretti, who has previously written forSaturday Night Live,hilariously announced on Thursday that she too was leaving the cast, with anInstagrampost declaring: "CHELSEA PERETTI TO EXIT SNL AND 'WASN'T EVEN A CAST MEMBER'." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Chelsea Peretti (@chelsanity) Sign up forEntertainment Weekly's free daily newsletterto get breaking news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more. Saturday Night Liveseason 51 premieres Saturday, Oct. 4 at 11:30 p.m. ET/8:30 p.m. PT, on NBC and Peacock. Read the original article onEntertainment Weekly