The thirty-seventh season of Saturday Night Live premiered on September 24, 2011, during the 2011-2012 television season. The season premiered on September 24, 2011, hosted by actor Alec Baldwin, with musical guest Radiohead and concluded on May 19, 2012, with host and musical guest Mick Jagger, with Arcade Fire, Foo Fighters and Jeff Beck.
The season began with minimal changes to the cast, as everyone from the prior year returned. The only major change was Nasim Pedrad being upgraded to repertory status.
Vanessa Bayer, Paul Brittain, Taran Killam, and Jay Pharoah all remained as featured players. Brittain, who had joined the show for season 36 alongside Bayer, Killam, and Pharoah, exited abruptly halfway through this season, making his final appearance on January 14, 2012. Following Brittain's departure, impressionist and writer Kate McKinnon, previously a cast member on The Big Gay Sketch Show, joined the cast midseason, as a featured player, making her debut on April 7, 2012, following a March 28, 2012, report of her being hired. McKinnon is SNL's first openly gay cast member hired since Terry Sweeney in 1985, and the show's first openly gay female cast member (Denny Dillon from the 1980–81 season was SNL's first lesbian cast member, but Dillon's sexuality was not public knowledge until much later).
This marked the sixth time without any cuts to the cast between the premiere of the season and its previous season finale— there have been no cast departures since Season 34.
This was the final season for longtime cast members Kristen Wiig and Andy Samberg, both cast members since 2005, as well as for Abby Elliott, who had been a cast member since 2008. Elliott was let go from the show following the finale, while Wiig and Samberg both left on their own terms.
Cast
Repertory Players
 Fred Armisen |
 Abby Elliott |
 Bill Hader |
 Seth Meyers |
 Bobby Moynihan |
 Nasim Pedrad |
 Andy Samberg |
 Jason Sudeikis |
 Kenan Thompson |
 Kristen Wiig |
Featured Players
 Vanessa Bayer |
 Paul Brittain |
 Taran Killam |
 Kate McKinnon |
 Jay Pharoah |
Changes
- Paul Brittain: Last January 14
- Kate McKinnon: First April 7
Episodes
Deaths
- Tom Davis (July 19, 2012)
Trivia
- Alec Baldwin, who hosted the September 24, 2011 episode and the season premiere, attains the record of most frequent host which was formerly shared with him and Steve Martin, with sixteen times hosting. That episode was also Baldwin's first time hosting a season premiere, and has joined Martin in becoming one of two men to host a season premiere, a Christmas episode and a season finale.
- With this season Seth Meyers surpasses Tina Fey as the longest serving Weekend Update anchor, though she remains the longest serving female Update anchor.
| Preceded by: Season 36 |
Season 37 (2011— 2012) |
Followed by: Season 38 |
| Seasons | |
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