‘Saturday Night Live’ cast member Punkie Johnson will not be returning next season

By Dan Heching, CNN

(CNN) — Punkie Johnson is signing off from “Saturday Night Live” ahead of the long-running sketch comedy show’s 50th season.

The comedian made the announcement on Instagram on Thursday, posting a video in which she said, “After four seasons, I will not be returning to ‘SNL’ for the 50th.”

Johnson said later in the clip that she casually dropped the news the night prior at her “Punkie and Friends” comedy show at Union Hall in Brooklyn, New York, and woke up to “text messages, phone calls, (and) tags on the internet” about it.

The entertainer also made sure to specify that her departure from the show is on good terms.

“It’s no bad blood, it’s no bridges burned, it’s no hard feelings,” Johnson said in the clip. “I love my people!”

“I didn’t think none of this was going to be a big deal,” she added, going on to joke, “See, this is why Dave Chappelle makes people lock up their phones.”

Johnson, who joined the show in 2020, called “SNL” “a dream I didn’t even know that I could achieve” and said she was “a part of one of the most elite institutions in comedy.”

“I am so grateful for it,” she said in the video. “That’s still my people. I love them.”

Just one day after Johnson made her announcement, her cast mate Molly Kearney also took to social media to share their plans to depart from the show.

CNN has reached out to representatives for “SNL” for comment.

The news of Johnson’s and Kearney’s departure comes a few months before “Saturday Night Live’s” milestone Season 50 on NBC.

Earlier this week, Sony Pictures announced its movie about the pilot episode of the historic series, titled “Saturday Night,” will be released in October. It will star Dylan O’Brien, Rachel Sennott, Finn Wolfhard, Jon Batiste, Willem Defoe, J.K. Simmons and Kaia Gerber.

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