The Best TV Shows Starring SNL Alumni

Updated November 11, 2020 6.2k votes 651 voters 21.7k views56 items

List RulesTV shows that star a former Saturday Night Live cast member only. Vote up the overall best shows.

There might just be a machine in Lorne Michaels’s mansion basement that churns out shows starring Saturday Night Live cast members. With over four decades on the air and tons of talent passing through the cast, there’s certainly a lot of material to mine - all comedies, natch, but diverse in scope, from political Veep (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) to quirky Portlandia (Fred Armisen) to irreverent 30 Rock (Tina Fey, Tracy Morgan, Chris Parnell). Once SNL cast members become alumni, they are usually best known for their current roles, not their glory days on the show. Soon audiences forget that TV shows starring SNL alums are everywhere.

The talk show circuit has certainly benefited from vacating SNL cast. From Jimmy Fallon to Seth Meyers, some of the best SNL cast member TV shows are holding it down in late night. Other former cast mates have teamed up – consider Will Forte and Jason Sudeikis, who have put some fine comedy on the small screen with The Last Man on Earth. Fred Armisen and Bill Hader created the acclaimed mockumentary series Documentary Now! And a number of SNL alum lend their voices to The Awesomes.

These TV series starring former SNL cast members crosses many genres and formats: some are animated comedies, some are talk shows, and some are only available through premium channels. But it's up to you to decide the very best of the best. Which TV shows with Saturday Night Live cast members rule? Vote up your favorites.

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Seinfeld
Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Premiered: 1989
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Comedy
SNL Alumnus: Julia Louis-Dreyfus (1982-1985)
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Parks and Recreation
Amy Poehler, Jim O'Heir
Premiered: 2009
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Mockumentary, Satire, Romance TV, Comedy-drama
SNL Alumnus: Amy Poehler (2001-2008)
Parks and Recreation (NBC, 2009) is an American television sitcom created by Greg Daniels and... more
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Veep
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Anna Chlumsky
Premiered: 2012
Genres (Tv): Political satire, Comedy
SNL Alumnus: Julia Louis-Dreyfus (1982-1985)
Veep (HBO, 2012) is an American political satire comedy television series created by Armando... more
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Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Andy Samberg, Stephanie Beatriz
Premiered: 2013
Genres (Tv): Comedy, Sitcom, Police procedural
SNL Alumnus: Andy Samberg (2005-2012)
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30 Rock
Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin
Premiered: 2006
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Satire
SNL Alumni: Tina Fey (2000-2006), Tracy Morgan (1996-2003), Chris Parnell (1998-2001, 2002-2006)
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Better Call Saul
Bob Odenkirk, Jonathan Banks
Premiered: 2015
Genres (Tv): Crime Fiction, Drama, Comedy
SNL Alumni: Bob Odenkirk (1987-1995), Michael McKean (1994-1995)
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Archer
H. Jon Benjamin, Judy Greer
Premiered: 2009
Genres (Tv): Adult animation, Action, Comedy
SNL Alumnus: Chris Parnell (1998-2001, 2002-2006)
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In Living Color
Keenen Ivory Wayans, Jim Carrey
Premiered: 1990
Genres (Tv): Sketch comedy, Variety show, Sketch, Comedy
SNL Alumni: Damon Wayans (1985-1986), Chris Rock (1990-1993)
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NewsRadio
Dave Foley, Stephen Root
Premiered: 1995
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Comedy
SNL Alumnus: Phil Hartman (1986-1994)
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Rick and Morty
Justin Roiland, Chris Parnell
Premiered: 2013
Genres (Tv): Adult animation, Sci-fi, Comedy, Adventure
SNL Alumnus: Chris Parnell (1998-2001, 2002-2006)
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Community
Joel McHale, Gillian Jacobs
Premiered: 2009
Genres (Tv): Sitcom
SNL Alumnus: Chevy Chase (1975–1997)

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The New Adventures of Old Christine
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Clark Gregg
Premiered: 2006
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Comedy
SNL Alumnus: Julia Louis-Dreyfus (1982-1985)
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Everybody Hates Chris
Terry Crews, Tichina Arnold
Premiered: 2005
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Comedy-drama, Comedy
SNL Alumnus: Chris Rock (1990-1993)
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Just Shoot Me!
Laura San Giacomo, Enrico Colantoni
Premiered: 1997
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Comedy
SNL Alumnus: David Spade (1990-1996)
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Late Night with Seth Meyers
Seth Meyers
Premiered: 2014
Genres (Tv): Talk show, Variety show
SNL Alumnus: Seth Meyers (2001-2014)
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Rules of Engagement
Patrick Warburton, Megyn Price
Premiered: 2007
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Comedy
SNL Alumnus: David Spade (1990-1996)
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The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
Jimmy Fallon
Premiered: 2014
Genres (Tv): Talkshow, Variety
SNL Alumnus: Jimmy Fallon
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Conan
Conan O'Brien, Ginnifer Goodwin
Premiered: 2010
Genres (Tv): Talk show, Variety show, Comedy
SNL Alumnus: Robert Smigel (1991-1993)
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My Wife and Kids
Damon Wayans, Tisha Campbell-Martin
Premiered: 2001
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Comedy
SNL Alumnus: Damon Wayans (1985-1986)
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The Last Man on Earth
Will Forte, January Jones
Premiered: 2015
SNL Alumni: Will Forte (2002-2010), Jason Sudeikis (2005-2013)
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Suburgatory
Jeremy Sisto, Jane Levy
Premiered: 2011
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Satire, Comedy
SNL Alumni: Ana Gasteyer (1996-2002), Chris Parnell (1998-2001, 2002-2006)
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Portlandia
Fred Armisen, Carrie Brownstein
Premiered: 2011
Genres (Tv): Sketch comedy
SNL Alumnus: Fred Armisen (2002-2013)
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Documentary Now!
Fred Armisen, Helen Mirren
Premiered: 2015
Genres (Tv): Comedy, Satire
SNL Alumni: Bill Hader (2005-2013), Fred Armisen (2002-2013)
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Happy Endings
Eliza Coupe, Elisha Cuthbert
Premiered: 2011
Genres (Tv): Sitcom
SNL Alumnus: Casey Wilson (2008-2009)
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Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp
Marguerite Moreau, Zak Orth
Premiered: 2015
Genres (Tv): Comedy
SNL Alumni: Janeane Garofalo (1994-1995), Amy Poehler (2001-2008), Michaela Watkins (2008-2009), Kristin Wiig (2005-2012)
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