Saturday Night Live set to return in January 2026 with Finn Wolfhard

Saturday Night Live (SNL) will return from its winter hiatus in January 2026, continuing in its usual timeslot on NBC. The 50-plus-season sketch comedy series will resume with its standard format, including a celebrity host, a musical guest, and topical sketches.

After a wide range of celebrity hosts in season 51, Finn Wolfhard will take the stage next after the winter hiatus. The 22-year-old actor recently wrapped filming on the Netflix series Stranger Things. It will mark his SNL debut. However, he already has a connection to the iconic television series, having portrayed an NBC page in the 2024 film Saturday Night Live.

Wolfhard will be joined by a variety of cast members, including Michael Che, Chloe Fineman, Ashley Padilla, Colin Jost, and several others. However, the January episode marks a significant change for the show, as fan-favorite cast member Bowen Yang has left. He joined in 2018 as a writer, became a featured star in season 45, and a full cast member in season 47. Episode 9 of season 51, on December 21, was his last.

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Finn Wolfhard set to host his first Saturday Night Live episode after winter hiatus

Following Saturday Night Live’s return from its winter hiatus on January 17, 2026, Stranger Things star Finn Wolfhard will headline the episode as the celebrity host. The gig comes at the peak of Wolfhard’s career, as Netflix recently released the final season of Stranger Things. The fifth season of the critically acclaimed Netflix hit released four episodes in November, with three more set to be released on Christmas, before a 125-minute series finale on New Year’s Eve.

The announcement came during SNL’s final show of 2025, when Ariana Grande was the celebrity host. Cher joined her as the musical guest in an episode marked by a goodbye. Bowen Yang left the show, and SNL’s cast members and fans bid the fan-favorite star farewell.

Wolfhard’s appearance in the series marks yet another impressive addition to the hosting duties, as season 51 has featured a catalog of impressive celebrity hosts. That includes Sabrina Carpenter, Miles Teller, Amy Poehler, Bad Bunny, Glen Powell, and several others over the course of the season’s 9 episodes.

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A$AP Rocky to star as musical guest in Saturday Night Live season 51 episode 10

35th Gotham Film Awards - Arrivals - (Image via Getty)

Joining Finn Wolfhard as the musical guest on SNL season 51, episode 10, when the show returns, is A$AP Rocky. The announcement came at the same time Wolfhard was announced as the next celebrity host, and it marks A$AP Rocky’s first SNL appearance. However, he has made cameos in the past, appearing in May 2018 when Donald Glover hosted an episode.

The Harlem-born rapper has thrived since his breakout mixtape in 2011, and his appearance on the iconic show comes as his career is at a peak, having just released his fifth studio album. The album, titled Don't Be Dumb, features Tyler the Creator, Metro Boomin and Lana del Rey.

The episode will be the last one as SNL takes another break while NBC shifts its focus to broadcasting the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics.

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Saturday Night Live season 51 episode 10 will premiere on January 17, 2026.

Edited by Shreya Das