“Saturday Night Live” scored its most-watched episode in additional than a yr on Dec. 20 with 5.4 million viewers.
Not solely was the episode hosted by pop star and “Depraved” actress Ariana Grande with Cher as musical visitor — it additionally marked Bowen Yang’s final outing as a solid member. Yang joined “SNL” as a author in 2018 earlier than turning into the late evening sketch present’s first-ever Asian solid member throughout Season 45 in 2019. News of his exit was reported the day earlier than his final present.
This isn’t the primary time Grande has introduced sturdy scores to “SNL”: When she hosted in October 2024 alongside musical visitor Stevie Nicks, the ensuing 5.6 million viewers have been the present’s biggest audience since Elon Musk hosted in Could 2021. Throughout Season 50, Grande’s episode was solely outdone when John Mulaney hosted the next month, hitting 6.8 million viewers, and Grande’s Season 51 episode has been the most important since then.
Earlier than Grande’s evening as host and Yang’s exit, the most-watched episode of “SNL” Season 51 with 4.6 million viewers was the Oct. 4 season premiere, when Dangerous Bunny hosted with Doja Cat as musical visitor. On Peacock, Dangerous Bunny’s episode remains to be the most-watched of the season, adopted by Grande’s.
Moreover, Saturday marked the most important Christmas episode since 2020, when Kristen Wiig hosted with Dua Lipa as musical visitor, attaining 6.6 million viewers.
Grande’s episode has additionally been Season 51’s greatest on social media, with 503 million views throughout YouTube, Fb, X, Instagram and TikTok as of Dec. 23, outpacing each episode of Season 50.
“Saturday Evening Dwell” is produced in affiliation with Broadway Video, with Lorne Michaels as creator and government producer. The sequence returns on Jan. 17 with “Stranger Issues” star Finn Wolfhard as host and A$AP Rocky as musical visitor.
