Brooks Wheelan tweeted Monday afternoon that he would not be rejoining the Saturday Night Live cast for Season 40.
Had a blast and loved every second of it. I'm totally honored to be able to make this next joke… FIRED FROM NEW YORK IT'S SATURDAY NIGHT!
— Brooks Wheelan (@brookswheelan) July 14, 2014
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Wheelan, 27, joined the cast in Season 39 as a last-minute addition to the show. He was known for his appearances on Weekend Update. He also did impressions of Jared Leto, Harry Styles and Matthew McConaughey, among other celebrities.
Though Saturday Night Live has yet to comment on Wheelan’s departure from the show, a source confirmed to E! News that the comedian’s contract was not renewed.
This piece of news is one among many changes Saturday Night Live has seen over the past year. Seth Meyers exited the show this season to host Late Night. And aside from Wheelan, six other cast members were added for Season 39: Beck Bennett, Noel Wells, Kyle Mooney, Mike O’Brien and John Milhiser all joined at the beginning while Sasheer Zamata joined midseason. No word yet on their fate on the show for the upcoming season, but cast member Nasim Pedrad, who has been on the show since 2009, is speculated to be leaving SNL to star in the upcoming Fox sitcom Mulaney.
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According to The Hollywood Reporter, Wheelan had little character work or sketch comedy experience when he was chosen to join the cast. Apparently, Wheelan openly joked about his lack of experience during his final auditions.
The comedian seemed to be in good spirits, making light of the announcement yesterday. In fact, director Judd Apatow tweeted in response to Wheelan’s news with some encouraging words that, “you will have the Robert Downey Jr. post-SNL career! (minus the painful drug addiction). Rock on friend!”
Wheelan seemed to be all for Apatow’s words.
.@JuddApatow thanks man! I'm gonna take this time to formally submit myself for the Ironman reboot in 2021 and the Chaplin reboot in 2032.
— Brooks Wheelan (@brookswheelan) July 15, 2014
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