Overview

• Ego Nwodim told a Fast Company Innovation Festival audience on Sept. 17 that SNL was always a stepping stone, citing goals to direct and expand her writing.
• She announced her departure on Sept. 12 after seven seasons, having joined in 2018 and moved to the main cast in 2020.
• Her decision surprised fans and industry watchers because NBC had circulated a Season 51 lineup that appeared to include her before circumstances changed.
• Her exit tracks with a broader late-summer reset that saw departures by Heidi Gardner, Michael Longfellow, Devon Walker and Emil Wakim, plus a Please Don’t Destroy reshuffle that elevated Ben Marshall to the cast while Martin Herlihy moved to writing and John Higgins left.
• Nwodim highlighted recent post-SNL activity, including New York Fashion Week interviews and a Solidcore ad, and recounted how her Miss Eggy Weekend Update bit drew an on-air expletive that raised broadcast-standards concerns ahead of the Oct. 4 Season 51 premiere.