Ego Nwodim on ‘SNL’ Exit and hopes for more black women in cast

Ego Nwodim shares her feelings about her time on “Saturday Night Live” and her decision to leave the late-night series just before its 51st season.

On Wednesday’s episode of “Sherri,” Sherri Shepherd pointed out that there are no longer any Blasck women in the cast of “SNL” and asked Nwodim if she felt “the weight of all that representation” during her time on the show.

“I don’t know if I would mention the weight. I felt honored to be the seventh Black woman in that cast,” Nwodim responded. “I hope there will be more black women. Punkie Johnson came on the show after me. Who knows who else they will find as they discover and look for other talents?” (Johnson joined the cast in 2020 and left in 2024, a year before Nwodim’s departure.)

“I really think I represented a lot of characters, different types of characters,” she continued. “Some people haven’t always understood that nuance, but I do feel like I was given the opportunity to represent and that was very important to me.”

Nwodim joined “SNL” as a featured player in 2018 season 44 before being promoted to the main cast for season 48 in 2020, where he appeared for a total of seven seasons. Of her departure, she said: “It’s like being in a marriage. I’ve never done it before, but that show was my longest relationship ever. I’m not a commitment-phobe, but I heard that being married gives you that seven-year itch. And it’s like, I want to date other people! I want to see some other privates!”

“It felt like the moment to make room for something else for me,” Nwodim added.