Ahead of the release of its 52nd season, Saturday Night Live revealed the first four sets of hosts and musical guests that will appear on the show.
SNL often uses the celebrity hosts of its episode to inspire the skits they perform each week, having the hosts perform in comedy routines that parody their own recent successes and projects. In a similar manner, SNL chooses their musical guests based on their upcoming or recent music releases.
National Basketball Association champion Jalen Brunson is set to host the first episode of the season. Brunson made history with the New York Knicks over the summer, leading the team to win their first NBA championship in 53 years in a tight series of games against the San Antonio Spurs. Brunson was named Most Valuable Player in the championship games, largely in part for scoring 45 points against the Spurs in game five of the series.
The success of the Knicks in the championship became a hot topic on social media platforms over the summer. While that was partially due to the historic nature of the team’s run in the 2026 season, another key part came from how intensely Knicks fans were celebrating the victory. News outlets and social media posts showed Knicks fans flooding the streets of New York City, celebrating for hours and even destroying a school bus in their revelry.
The musical guest joining Brunson for the first episode will be K-pop group KATSEYE, who will be making their first appearance on SNL in that episode. On Aug. 14, the group released their third EP “WILD,” a five-track album that received below-average reviews upon release.
The second episode of the new season will be hosted by Dakota Johnson, who will be making her third appearance on the show. Johnson will be starring in the upcoming psychological thriller film “Verity” alongside Anne Hathaway and Josh Hartnett. “Verity” follows Johnson’s character, Lowen Ashleigh, as she is brought on to ghostwrite for famed author Verity Crawford (Hathaway). As Ashleigh discovers notes left by Crawford, she is led down a path that blurs the line between what's real and what's fake. “Verity” is scheduled to be released in theaters on Oct. 2.
Joining Johnson as the musical guest will be rock band Turnstile in their first appearance on SNL. Turnstile recently released their album “NEVER ENOUGH: VERSIONS,” a reimagining of their previous album “NEVER ENOUGH.” The new album includes variations of their songs with contributions from other artists such as Elton John, Porches and Angel Du$t.
The following episode will be emceed by returning host Shane Gillis. The stand-up comedian broke two world records in July this year, one for the largest live audience for a comedian with 73,946 attendees and the record for most tickets sold for a comedy show with 77,047 tickets sold. Gillis used to work at SNL before being fired due to racist and homophobic jokes made on his podcast, which he has since expressed regret over.
Joining Gillis will be Rosalía, who is making her second appearance on the show. Rosalía released her newest album “LUX (Complete Workson April 18. The 18-piece album includes lyrics sung in 14 different languages, each one reportedly relating back to historic female figures in religions including Christianity, Islam, Judaism and Buddhism.
The fourth episode will be hosted by rising Hollywood star Inde Navarrette. Navarrette first entered the spotlight with her stellar performance as Nikki in the horror film “Obsession.” Her terrifying yet equally heartbreaking performance in the film caught the attention of many, including Marvel Studios. At Disney’s D23 Expo this year, Navarrette was announced to play the Marvel hero Rogue in the upcoming “X-Men” film set to release in 2028.
Navarrette will be joined by Gracie Abrams as the musical guest. Abrams’s newest album, “Daughter from Hell,” released in July of this year. The somber album received middling critical success on its release, but still made top spot on the Billboard 200 the week it dropped.
The new season of SNL is set to premiere on Sept. 26.
