Top 10 SNL Cast Members Whose Careers Ended After Leaving

The exit of Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi by the end of the fourth season left a hole in the cast that showrunner Lorne Michaels quickly filled with relatively new faces, one of whom was the younger Aykroyd brother. Unlike Dan, Peter didn’t make much of an appearance on the show, receiving a player credit on only six of his sixteen total episodes. His career afterwards consisted of minor film roles and a Worst Screenplay Razzie nomination for “Nothing but Trouble,” which he co-wrote with his brother. Other than a Canadian sci-fi series he co-created in the late nineties called “Psi Factor”, sightings of Peter Aykroyd in the media were few and far between after his SNL stint. And sadly, Dan’s younger brother passed away in November 2021.

It goes without saying that in the early 80s, “SNL “was the Eddie Murphy Special.” The brilliant comedian dominated the show, overshadowing other talented cast members like Tim Kazurinsky. Hired without even being auditioned, Kazurinsky was a killer at celebrity impressions and played a host of other popular characters like Dr. Jack Badofsky and Madge the Monkey’s husband. He left “SNL” after three years, ready to take on Hollywood, and quickly landed the role of Carl Sweetchuck on the “Police Academy” film series. This, he followed up with a bunch of minor roles in films and on TV, never quite attaining nearly the same level of fame as some of his former castmates.

“Fired from New York, It’s Saturday Night!” Those were the words that this fresh-faced comic from Cedar Rapids, Iowa used to announce his firing from the show after just one season. Brooks Wheelan was hired as a writer for the thirty-ninth season, and then quickly added as a cast member mere days before the season premiere. This rush may have played a role in him not quite fitting with the rest of the cast, resulting in his early dismissal. He hit the road on a stand-up comedy tour shortly after and released a critically acclaimed comedy album in 2015, but has largely remained distant from the spotlight.

There are one season SNL cast members like Robert Downey Jr. and Sarah Silverman who went on to become household names, and then there are people like John Milhiser. After performing with the Upright Citizens Brigade sketch teams in New York and Los Angeles, Milhiser was hired as a featured player on the thirty-ninth season, becoming only the second openly-gay male cast member on the show. Although brilliant at physical comedy, his presence was hardly felt as he struggled to stand out among the already overpopulated cast. After being let go, Milhiser made guest appearances on TV shows but sadly, none proved to be a breakout role. Oh well, at least dancing maniacally with Lady Gaga is a great claim to fame.

It’s Queen Shenequa, everybody! Ellen Cleghorne was instrumental in balancing the heavy masculine energy of “SNL” sketches in the early 90s. Over her four-year run, she performed several celebrity impressions and played memorable characters like Queen Shenequa and Zoraida, the short-tempered NBC page. Cleghorne exited the show on a high, going on to star in her own sitcom on The WB. The series was canceled after one season and she quietly vanished from the mainstream media, only resurfacing years later to play a minor role in former castmate, Adam Sandler’s “Grown Ups 2.” With her sights now set on academia, Cleghorne received a PhD in Performance Studies from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.

Lorne Michaels giveth and Lorne Michaels taketh away! This veteran improv comedian was brought on for “SNL’s” thirty-sixth season alongside other well-known cast members like Vanessa Bayer and Taran Killam. He quickly gained recognition on the show for his spot-on impressions and original characters, including Lord Cecil Wyndemere and “Sex” Ed Vincent, only to abruptly leave midway through his second season. Brittain took on a supporting role on the short-lived ABC sitcom, “Trophy Wife,” and on the 2017 film, “Killing Gunther,” directed by Taran Killam. He’s pretty much disappeared since then, but it’s highly likely he just needs a little more attention.

It’s a little tricky understanding how Jay Pharoah went from being a breakout star on “SNL” to fading into the background after his departure. The remarkable impressionist spent six seasons on the show playing a roster of celebrity impressions and knocking every single one of them out of the park. Probably most famous for his portrayal of Barack Obama, Pharoah was strangely let go from the show in 2016 just as Obama’s presidency was coming to an end. He bagged regular roles on two series that both ended up getting cancelled after one season, and never quite landed the breakout role he so badly deserved.

One of the original ‘Not Ready for Primetime Players,’ Laraine Newman was a bright-eyed twenty-two-year-old when she grabbed the attention of Lorne Michaels while performing as a founding member of the sketch comedy troupe, The Groundlings. Admittedly not the best of improvisers, Newman carefully crafted her characters beforehand, performing several memorable ones during her five-year stint on the show. In the 80s and 90s, she took on an array of supporting roles in comedy movies and series, then largely transitioned to voice acting at the turn of the new millennium. You may not have seen her on your screen in decades, but if you’re a “SpongeBob” fan, her voice may sound just a little familiar.

Even though Eddie Murphy dominated “SNL” in the early 80s, there was one person who held his ground and still shone in that era, and that was Joe Piscopo. One of only two cast members who were retained after Jean Doumanian was fired from the show - the other being Murphy - Piscopo had several well-done impressions under his belt, most notably Frank Sinatra and David Letterman. After leaving “SNL” in 1984, Piscopo starred in the crime comedy film, “Johnny Dangerously,” which received mixed reviews and did little or nothing to propel his budding career. Since then, he’s appeared in a few minor TV roles, stand-up specials, and in 2017, considered a run for Governor of New Jersey.