With Jon Stewart's Daily Show retirement, Stephen Colbert's move to the land of Late Show (with a nonfictional television persona), and Seth Meyers' monumental decision to deliver his Late Night monologue while sitting down, we need some constants in late night news coverage for the rest of 2015. Who will host Weekend Update on Saturday Night Live this season?
Since neither Michael Che nor Colin Jost have been fired, as far as we know, I think it's safe to assume that they'll be keeping the mantle for another season. If there were anyone in the current Saturday Night Live cast that I think could replace either of them, it would be Leslie Jones. That said, an interview that Colin Jost did with The Daily Beast all but confirms that Jost and Che will return to Update are looking to have more fun with their position on the show this time around.
“Having a year now under our belt, I just feel like we know more and more what we want to do. [...] We’re itching to get back and keep trying to improve... That’s why I’m really excited about this year. Last year in the summer I was really nervous. I didn’t know if I had a job. Now I’m more anxious on a week-to-week level. I just want to get better.”
Good goals to have! I think it's fair to say that Michael Che and Colin Jost will definitely be stronger in Season 41 now that they've had a year together. Practice makes perfect and all that razzmatazz. One thing I would like to see more from this pair on Weekend Update is bits with just each other — which is something that other successful Weekend Update duos have done in the past. Here's a little bit of aSaturday Night Live Weekend Update Easter Egg: if you ever see one of the anchors start an item about "a new study on tree frogs," you know it's going to be interrupted by something. What happened to the tree frogs? When Amy Poehler drunk dials Seth Meyers in the middle of a segment, or in earlier seasons when Norm MacDonald flirts with Cheri Oteri and Molly Shannon, that helps to build the actors' "characters" as both Weekend Update anchors and SNL cast members in general. Here's an example with Tina Fey and Jimmy Fallon.
Even though this happened after Jimmy Fallon had left Saturday Night Live,doing a bit about being divorced and naming their child after Lorne Michaels makes them more fun to conceptualize as fake news anchors. Weekend Update may be a familiar format, but it is as much of a sketch as anything else. I want to see more of a defined comedic dynamic between Michael Che and Colin Jost. They already have developed relationships with the audience and with many of the guest correspondents, but not so much as a team. Here's hoping that Season 41 brings us all of that and more!
Image: Dana Edelson/NBC
