50 Years Later and It’s Still Saturday Night

Published on March. 8, 2025, at 2:06 p.m.
by Abby Cope.

The show “Saturday Night Live” has been a staple on television screens in homes across the country every weekend for years. From its rather chaotic origins of its pilot in 1975, SNL has come a long way from its early days.

The first airing of the show included a drunken production team, a set on fire and 60 minutes of live comedy gold. The initial airing was such a disaster, Sony Pictures produced a movie re-telling the night’s events in 2024 called “Saturday Night.”

Creator Lorne Michaels envisioned the show to be a comedy, but more than that a platform for celebrating history and significant cultural moments in a way no other show had done before. Michaels said he wanted the show to appear as if “a bunch of kids had snuck into the studio after all the adults went home.” The format of SNL, a live show with a studio audience watching while cast members perform various skits, disrupted the usual layout and idea of a nightly special.

SNL has set the standard for live-television longevity. Even after 50 years, it amassed around 4.9 million views per week in its 50th season, and an astounding 14.8 million for its “50th Anniversary Special.” So how does SNL manage to keep this much relevance 50 years after its initial premiere?

A hallmark of the weekly Saturday night show is its skit format, a 60-minute show made up of multiple, individual skits. Though there are recurring bits, such as Weekend Update and Bridesmaid Speech, the composition of fresh new bits each and every week allows the producers to keep watchers interested and have them come back for new content.

SNL has a unique position where it can comment directly on major events and culturally significant moments, easily incorporating them into the show’s plot. The writers have developed skits based around popularized apps such as TikTokin order to tap into a younger audience. From actors impersonating famous politicians to having actual presidential candidates guest star on the show, SNL knows how to pique potential watchers’ interest. This is just another way the show has been able to keep its widespread viewership.

The show also is able to keep engagement up through new faces in the cast weekly. The show has a rotating cast, with fan favorites staying on for several seasons. There is also a celebrity host each week who guest stars in a skit, along with a musical guest star who performs their music for a segment of the show. The show even has a special club, The Five-Timers Club, for hosts who are seasoned professionals and have hosted the show at least five times. These incentives to both headline and watch the show keep it fresh and adaptable to new famous faces in Hollywood, tapping into viewers’ changing interests.

SNL is able to connect with its viewers in a way that scripted or other late-night live shows simply cannot. It presents its comedic commentary on current events through a more casual and lax tone, making it more relatable. SNL has also in recent years strategically leaned into the usage of social media platforms by uploading past sketches, showing behind-the-scenes content and making social media polls, which create a real-time conversation between watcher and cast member. By focusing on timely issues and engaging with viewers through social media, the show has adapted to an age of rapid-fire consumption.

Though SNL has changed immensely in cast and content from its initial runs, that is the beauty of the show. Its adaptability to current events and pop culture trends allows it to maintain relevancy and record high views even half a century later. Every weekend since 1975, homes across America tune in — because, well, it’s Saturday night!