Lorne Michaels, along with many others, celebrated the 50th anniversary of Saturday Night Live this past weekend.
On Saturday, February 15, the special aired live from New York, featuring a star-studded lineup of alumni, including Steve Martin, who has hosted the show 16 times.
But one question lingers as the 80-year-old reflects on the countless moments he’s created on NBC and beyond: will the Emmy-winning producer, writer, and comedian continue his tenure? Find out more below.
How Long Has Lorne Michaels Produced SNL?
Michaels first garnered the attention of Dick Ebersol, NBC’s head of late-night television programming, in the early 1970s. At that time, Michaels was a 29-year-old comedy writer from Toronto, Canada.
He served as a producer on SNL from 1975 to 1980, before taking a five-year hiatus to focus on other projects. Since 1985, he has remained at the helm of the show.
With 21 Primetime Emmy Awards from 106 nominations, Michaels has also been instrumental in launching the careers of some of the biggest stars in entertainment.
Is Lorne Michaels Retiring From SNL?
It’s unclear when exactly Lorne plans on retiring from SNL. During his 2024 ET interview, the writer noted that SNL had planned their 50th-anniversary special for February 2025, adding, “So, I will definitely be there for that and definitely be there until then. And then we’ll figure out what we’re going to do.”
Who Will Replace Lorne Michaels?
Lorne agreed with ET‘s Nischelle Turner in 2024 when she noted that many people have thought Tina Fey could replace him.
“It could easily be Tina Fey,” Lorne acknowledged, before adding, “But there are a lot of people who are there now who are also, you know … Tina’s brilliant and great at everything. She’s a very important person in my life.”
Tina started out on SNL in the late 1990s as a writer. She occasionally appeared in sketches as an extra and became the show’s first-ever head female writer. By 2000, Tina became a cast member and eventually appeared alongside Jimmy Fallon on Weekend Update. In 2006, Tina left SNL to work on the comedy series 30 Rock.
This story originally appeared on Hollywoodlife
