Continuing a trend of Saturday Night Live cast members making the leap to hosting late-night shows, Weekend Update host Michael Che is set to become the latest example. Che, now in his 10th year as an SNL member, has been working on Don’t Sleep with Michael Che, a show still in the very early stages. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the upcoming series is more free-flowing than something like The Tonight Show, but it still has a desk and couch while giving off a less scripted feel.
It’s worth noting that Don’t Sleep with Michael Che has only been shown off to private audiences and hasn’t been shopped around yet. Phones were banned from all the private showings, so don’t expect to find any clips surfacing anywhere. SNL head Lorne Michaels produces both Seth Meyers and Jimmy Fallon’s shows, both of which are former SNL cast members. Che has discussed the project with him, but it remains to be seen what the future holds.
“Sometimes you just got to motivate yourself to get on stage and try things, especially me because I’ll come up with an idea and then I’ll get bored and it dies in my imagination. So, I have no idea where this goes, but you never know, maybe NBC will put it on at three in the morning.”
Michael Che Has Not Planned His SNL Exit
When it comes to former SNL members, none of them stayed on the cast while they hosted their late-night show. The time needed for both jobs certainly plays a role, but fans have seen members pull double duty in other areas before. Kenan Thompson starred in two seasons of a sitcom while remaining a staple on SNL, and many of the cast do stand-up comedy while on the show.
Considering Che has been on the show for 10 years now, it would make sense for him to be looking elsewhere. A new set of faces has rotated into SNL with long-time names like Kate McKinnon, Cecily Strong, Pete Davidson, and Kyle Mooney all leaving in recent years. Che was asked by The Hollywood Reporter ahead of the 50th season if he’d be back for the next season, and he gave a non-answer.
“I try not to think about it because then I think it ruins the morale for the rest of the year. I just, I don’t know, you never know. Hopefully I say something and I don’t make it through the year.”
The Weekend Update segments are among the most popular parts of SNL, and the annual joke swap between Che and co-host Colin Jost during the holiday season always makes headlines. The comedians are also good friends and frequent collaborators, as evidenced by their Peacock comedy special released earlier this year. At this point, a lot of fans might feel like the two come as a package deal, so it’s difficult to imagine a world where Che leaves SNL and Jost stays on.