Collider argues that Saturday Night Live risks reversing recent progress on representation after several prominent cast departures. It says NBC should address the issue before Season 52, because a diverse permanent ensemble shapes recurring characters, creative perspectives and the programme’s future stars more meaningfully than occasional celebrity hosts.

Chloe Fineman left after seven seasons, following Bowen Yang’s mid-Season 51 exit, Ego Nwodim’s departure in September 2025 and Heidi Gardner’s in August 2025. The article notes that Yang was SNL’s first openly gay Asian-American cast member, while the Los Angeles Times reports the show has had only eight Black female cast members in its history; it argues that hosts including Bad Bunny, Teyana Taylor and Colman Domingo offered only a temporary remedy.