Bad Bunny Addressed Super Bowl Criticism During SNL Season 51 Premiere
NEW YORK – Bad Bunny launched Saturday Night Live’s 51st season with a premiere that directly confronted recent backlash over his Super Bowl LVIII halftime show performance. The artist opened his monologue acknowledging criticisms that his performance was tough to follow for those unfamiliar with his extensive catalog, joking that the show featured “17 new cast members” to represent the number of songs he performed.
The season premiere marked a meaningful shift for the long-running sketch comedy series,following the departure of five cast members: Ego Nwodim,Heidi Gardner,Devon Walker,Michael Longfellow,and Emil Wakim. Additionally, the popular “Please Don’t Destroy” sketches have been retired, leading to John Higgins’ exit from the show, while Ben Marshall joins the cast as a featured player and Martin Herlihy remains as a writer. New cast members Tommy Brennan, Jeremy Culhane, Kam Patterson, and Veronika Slowikowska have also been added.
Doja Cat served as the musical guest for the premiere, marking her first appearance on SNL. The remainder of the season’s host and musical guest lineup remains unannounced, though Amy Poehler is scheduled to host on October 11 with Role Model as the musical guest, and Sabrina Carpenter will host and perform musically on October 18.
