Jordan Karlesson
Saturday Night Live alumnus Kate McKinnon is finally opening up about why she left the legendary variety show.
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Kate McKinnon revealed Thursday on Live With Kelly and Ryan that physical exhaustion after a decade on SNL prompted her exit in May.
“I thought about it for a very long time, and it was very, very hard,” Kate McKinnon said. “All I ever wanted to do in my life was be on Saturday Night Live. And so I did. I loved it. I had the best decade. And then … my body was tired, and I felt like it was time.”
Kelly Ripa, who started as a morning TV talk show in 2001, then joked: “It was just a decade, though.”
McKinnon laughed: “I know, thank you.”
Ripa and co-host Ryan Seacrest next asked McKinnon how she will spend her Saturday nights going forward.
She admitted: “I don’t know what I will do. I don’t know if I can watch the show yet, because it’s just too emo. I miss everyone so much.”
McKinnon continued: “It’s my other family. … “I think I’m just going to tape The Bachelorette and watch it.”
Kate McKinnon’s SNL Legacy
McKinnon was a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 2012 to 2022. She missed the first seven episodes of the 2021-22 season due to filming the Peacock miniseries Joe vs. Carole.
McKinnon was the longest-running female cast member on the show. She departed at the end of its 47th season.
Fellow cast members Pete Davidson, Aidy Bryant, and Kyle Mooney also departed from the show on May 21.
Earlier this year, McKinnon co-starred with now-fellow SNL alumnus Fred Armisen in The Bubble. Directed by Judd Apatow, the Netflix film was panned by critics.
McKinnon also lent her voice to DC League of Super-Pets, set to hit theaters on July 29. Also, she has a role in the upcoming Barbie movie, due July 21 of next year.
