Saturday Night Live Cut the Return of Fan-Favorite Star for Adam Driver's Episode

Cecily Strong is one of the most popular comedians to appear on Saturday Night Live over the past two decades, and the SNL alumnus was once set to return to the series. New reports suggest Strong was on hand during rehearsals at Studio 8H ahead of Adam Driver's fourth hosting stint this past weekend. TheWrap says Strong played Representative Elise Stefanik during the show's cold open during the rehearsal. Strong, however, was nowhere to be found during the live taping of the episode, having been replaced by newcomer Chloe Troast.

The trade suspects Strong may have dropped out of the taping herself given her SNL co-star Kate McKinnon is set to return to 30 Rock during the December 16th edition of the show. Between McKinnon's highly anticipated return and the fact it's the last new episode of the year before an extended holiday break, it stands to reasons the show will be packed with surprise guests.

Why did Cecily Strong leave SNL?

As with most SNL departures, Strong left to pursue other opportunities in Hollywood. She appeared as a part of the SNL cast from 2012 until her departure halfway through Season 48 during the 2022-2023 fall television season.

"My heart is bursting. I have a lot of big huge life changing love to unpack, so this is what I can say tonight," Strong said in a lengthy post on Instagram after her departure. "Ten and a half years ago I got my dream job. The first actual work day I tried to be very cool and make it look like I knew what i was doing and I was supposed to be there."

Strong then recalled a humorous story in which she tried to leave the SNL offices, but couldn't find a way out of the building.

"I left that night around 11 after saying goodbye to everyone. I got stuck wandering around the building because none of the elevators went to the first floor and I was trying so hard to avoid having to go back upstairs to ask for help because I'd already said goodbye," she continued. "I think I went to every floor trying to figure out if there was another exit I was missing. I might have even gone into a stairwell. I ended up going back upstairs and my soon-to-be great friend Colin Jost helped me out and walked me over to the secret night time elevator. It felt as impossible to leave that night as it does now."

Who is in the Saturday Night Live cast?

Cast members for Saturday Night Live season 49 include almost the entire cast from season 48 of SNL. Returning stars include Michael Che, Mikey Day, Andrew Dismukes, Chloe Fineman, Heidi Gardner, James Austin Johnson, Punkie Johnson, Colin Jost, Ego Nwodim, Sarah Sherman, Kenan Thompson, and Bowen Yang. Featured players that are part of the cast include returning stars Marcello Hernandez, Molly Kearney, Michael Longfellow, and Devon Walker, plus the show's only fully new cast member for the year, newcomer Chloe Troast. The comedy troupe Please Don't Destroy, made up of Ben Marshall, John Higgins, and Martin Herlihy, are also a recurring part of the series.

Saturday Night Live Season 49 is ongoing now with new episodes airing on both NBC and Peacock, starting Saturdays at 11:30 PM ET. All 48  seasons of Saturday Night Live are also now streaming on Peacock.