SNL news: Melissa McCarthy, Dwayne Johnson and Chris Pine to host final Season 42 live episodes

Jimmy Fallon will host the first of the final four episodes of “SNL” Season 42 that will be broadcast live from coast-to-coast.

Saturday Night Live has made few format changes since it began its run in 1975. But the NBC sketch series will do something it has never done before starting in April to close out what has been its highest-rated season in over two decades thanks to its political moments, averaging 11 million viewers a week. The network announced Thursday that the show will air live on both coasts for the final four episodes of Season 42, while also revealing the hosts for said installments.

The Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon, who’s been bested by Stephen Colbert for six weeks running due to The Late Show host’s politically charged comedy, will take over the reigns of the show which made him famous during the April 15 episode. Three weeks later, Chris Pine will have his first go at hosting the program on May 6, followed by Melissa McCarthy on May 13, with Dwayne Johnson closing out the season on May 20. McCarthy’s gender bending role as Sean Spicer, which reportedly irked the president because it made his press secretary look weak, has been one of the many highlights this season. She and Johnson will both be joining the exclusive five-timers club with their latest hosting gigs.

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SNL normally airs in the Eastern time zone at 11:30 p.m., and later broadcasts a tape delayed version for the Mountain and Pacific time zones. But that will change starting with the Fallon-hosted episode as it airs simultaneously across the country, airing in prime time at 8:30 p.m. on the West Coast and 9:30 p.m. MT, as well as 10:30 p.m. CT as it typically does. Each episode will also be repeated at 10:30 p.m. in the Pacific and Mountain time zones later that night.

“SNL — enjoying its most popular season in two decades — is part of the national conversation, and we thought it would be a great idea to broadcast to the west and mountain time zones live at the same time it’s being seen in the east and central time zones,” NBC Entertainment Chairman Robert Greenblatt explained in a statement to UPROXX, which first reported the news. “That way, everyone is in on the joke at the same time. Kudos to Lorne Michaels, the producers and cast for making SNL one of the most relevant and anticipated shows in the zeitgeist.”

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The next new episode of SNL will be on Saturday, April 8th in its normal time slots, hosted by Louis CK for the fourth time, joined by The Chainsmokers as musical guests. The performers for the final four episodes will be announced in the coming weeks.

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