SNL Season 52 Cast Complete with Addition of Reiter and Belo-Osagie

Saturday Night Live has announced its final cast additions for Season 52, bringing on Grace Reiter and Saidah Belo-Osagie as featured players. The news dropped September 16, 2026, bringing the cast full circle ahead of the season premiere on September 26 with host Jalen Brunson and musical guest KATSEYE.

Saturday Nite Live has revealed Grace Reiter and Saidah Belo-Osagie as the show’s featured players for Season 52. This is the last casting announcement of the season, bringing the total cast to 17 members. The season will open on September 26, 2026, and will be hosted by New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson.

Grace Reiter is a stand-up comedian, actor, and content creator from Wisconsin who built a large following on TikTok and YouTube before moving to television. She was one of the original cast members of the TikTok sketch comedy show Stapleview, which helped build her digital presence.

Her television credits include a recurring role on HBO’s “The Chair Company” opposite Tim Robinson and the feature film “First Time Female Director” by Chelsea Peretti. Reiter is also expected to star in the upcoming Netflix mockumentary series “Minimum Wage,” based on the web series of the same name, which she wrote and directed.

In 2026, Reiter was one of Variety’s “10 Creators to Watch,” a nod to her growing star power in comedy. Gersh, Mosaic and Sloane, Offer, Weber & Dern represent her.

Saidah Belo-Osagie is a Nigerian American Brooklyn-based filmmaker and comedian originally from Queens, NY. As a writer, director, and performer across many platforms, she’s built a diverse portfolio.

Belo-Osagie created and stars in the solo theater show “Saidah Gets Closure” and founded the live-discussion-centered event series “Afrobeats Futura.” In 2020, she wrote and directed the short film Tinge. She also regularly does sketches on social media platforms.

Belo-Osagie posted on an Instagram story after the announcement that being on SNL is “a dream come true.” She is repped by Gersh, 3 Arts Entertainment and Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz.

Reiter and Belo-Osagie’s addition comes after several high-profile departures. Chloe Fineman, who left after seven seasons, said her goodbyes in July 2026. Bowen Yang exited the show in December 2025, midseason. Also out after five seasons is writer and occasional performer Martin Herlihy, formerly of the sketch trio Please Don’t Destroy, most recently a writer.

Belo-Osagie’s hiring closes a diversity gap at SNL, which had no Black female cast members last season, according to industry reports. Producers have been trying to fix this since Ego Nwodim’s surprise departure in fall 2025.

Reiter and Belo-Osagie complete the Season 52 cast, which now numbers 17. All remaining cast members from Season 51 are returning, including veterans Kenan Thompson, Michael Che, Colin Jost and Mikey Day, along with Andrew Dismukes, Marcello Hernández, James Austin Johnson, Sarah Sherman, Ashley Padilla and Jane Wickline.

All five players from Season 51 are back for their sophomore seasons: Ben Marshall, Tommy Brennan, Jeremy Culhane, Kam Patterson and Veronika Slowikowska.

On September 16, 2026, NBC and SNL producers confirmed the casting on their official social media accounts. The network confirmed that both performers have been signed on as featured players, the entry-level position for SNL cast members.

Industry sources said SNL might shoot its new title sequence with the new players as early as Sept. 17, 2026. Reiter and Belo-Osagie both auditioned earlier this summer, in Los Angeles, New York and Chicago, where SNL execs saw more than a dozen comedians.

The casting announcement came later than usual for SNL, which typically solidifies its troupe in early September.

Saturday Night Live Season 52 premieres September 26, 2026, at 11:30 p.m. ET/PT on NBC. New York Knicks guard and NBA Finals MVP Jalen Brunson will host the first episode, featuring pop group KATSEYE as the musical guest.

October’s additional confirmed host and musical guest pairings include:

• October 3: Dakota Johnson; musical guest Turnstile
• October 10: Shane Gillis; musical guest Rosalía
• October 31: Musical guest Gracie Abrams, Inde Navarrette

Created and executive produced by Lorne Michaels, the series is one of the longest-running sketch comedy series in television history and is now in its 52nd season.

Adding Reiter and Belo-Osagie is part of SNL’s ongoing effort to refresh its ensemble while maintaining continuity with returning cast members. Belo-Osagie’s hiring directly responds to the show’s lack of Black female representation after Nwodim’s exit, a void noted during Season 51.

The two new cast members have strong credentials in digital and alternative comedy, adding to SNL’s trend of seeking talent from social media platforms and independent comedy projects. Reiter’s background in TikTok sketch comedy and Belo-Osagie’s experience as a solo performer and event producer suggest the show wants performers with diverse creative portfolios.

The casting announcement came relatively late (mid-September rather than early September), suggesting the producers took time to assess candidates after Fineman and Yang exited.

New cast members are scheduled to begin rehearsals immediately for the Sept. 26 premiere. Industry reports suggested the cast photo and title sequence with Reiter and Belo-Osagie could be shot as early as Sept. 17.

Season 52 will continue with a full line-up of confirmed hosts through at least late October, with the show keeping its traditional Saturday night time slot on NBC.