'Saturday Night Live' Bringing In John Krasinski, Dan Levy, And Regina King To Host
Saturday Night Live made quite the for the show's 46th season last fall with a whopping six consecutive episodes that took us right through the election. Then they came back for some winter fun throughout December before taking a holiday hiatus. Now the late night sketch series with another five-episode block starting on January 30, and they're kicking things off with a trio of three first-time hosts, including one who was supposed to host last year before the coronavirus pandemic ruined everything.
The official announcement of the first 2021 Saturday Night Live hosts came from the show's social media channels.
Kicking off what will be five consecutive weekends of new Saturday Night Live episodes will be The Office star John Krasinski on January 30. The actor was actually slated to host last spring in conjunction with the release of A Quiet Place II, but the episode was pushed indefinitely along with the movie being delayed from theatrical release.
Now Krasinski gets to try again, but this time it won't quite be in support of A Quiet Place II. Though sci-fi horror sequel is currently slated for release on April 23, 2021, it will likely follow No Time to Die and all the other blockbusters fleeing from spring/summer release dates to sometime later in the year.
Krasinski will be joined by musical guest Machine Gun Kelly, and I wouldn't be surprised if we saw him pop up in at least one sketch. The hip-hop artist had supporting roles in Big Time Adolescence and The King of Staten Island, two movies from last year starring SNL cast member Pete Davidson. The two are quite friendly, so seeing them collaborate on a sketch sounds like a good possibility.
The next week, Schitt's Creek creator and star Dan Levy will put a cherry on top of an incredible year after his comedy won big at the Emmys last fall. Levy will host the February 6 episode as another first-time host. Levy has already proven to be a gifted comedy star and writer, and he's exactly the kind of talent you want to see hosting SNL. Knowing how hilarious Levy can be with comedic flamboyance, I'm personally very interested to see what he can do with cast member Bowen Yang.
Levy will be joined by musical guest Phoebe Bridgers (not be confused with Fleabag actress Phoebe Waller-Bridge), who is also making her SNL debut. She was recently nominated for four Grammys for her album Punisher from June 2020, including Best New Artist, Best Alternative Album, Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance.
Finally, Regina King will take the stage at Studio 8H to host SNL on February 13. Regina King has enjoyed a huge, recent surge in her already decorated career. In the past couple years, she won an Oscar for her supporting turn in If Beale Street Could Talk, an Emmy for her role in HBO's Watchmen, and there's plenty of Oscar buzz during the current awards season around her directorial debut One Night in Miami. Though she's been recognized plenty for her dramatic work, King also has outstanding comedic chops, so it should be a lot of fun to watch her play around at SNL.
King will be joined by first-time musical guest Nathaniel Rateliff, whose new single "Redemption" was written for the upcoming Apple TV+ original film Palmer starring Justin Timberlake. Otherwise, Rateliff released his album And It's Still Alright back in February of 2020.
There are two more episodes of Saturday Night Live scheduled for February 20 and February 27, but the hosts for those episodes won't be announced until later.