Season 50 of Saturday Night Live starts September 28 on NBC and Peacock, with Jean Smart hosting and Jelly Roll the musical guest. Smart stars in Max series Hacks, which won the Emmy for top comedy September 15. Smart owns six Emmys, including three for outstanding lead actress in a comedy for her work on Hacks. 

It will be Jelly Roll’s first time on SNL. 

Nate Bargatze hosts October 5, his second appearance, with Coldplay as musical guest for the eighth time. Ariana Grande hosts SNL for the second time October 12, and Stevie Nicks is musical guest for the second time. 

Michael Keaton hosts for the fourth time on October 19, with Billie Eilish the musical guest that day, also for the fourth time. 

John Mulaney hosts for the sixth time November 2, and Chappell Roan is the musical guest in her SNL debut. 

SNL has a 50th anniversary live primetime special set for February 16. 

The show is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels.

With Saturday Night Live about to mark a half-century on the air, NBCUniversal has sold presenting sponsorships for SNL’s 50th anniversary to Allstate, L’Oreal Group, T-Mobile and Volkswagen of America.

The SNL anniversary celebration wraps up with a live primetime special on February 16 from 8 p.m. till 11 p.m. ET.

Throughout the season, the brands will have opportunities to celebrate years of comedy through curated custom content and experiences across the NBCU portfolio, NBCU said.

Financial terms of the packages were not disclosed. NBCU talked about SNL 50 sponsorships being a hot ticket going into the upfronts.

“Saturday Night Live is a cultural institution that has been etched into NBCUniversal’s storied history. For five decades, SNL has been one of the most desired properties for marketers, and we are thrilled to have these presenting sponsors join us for the 50th anniversary season as we honor this iconic show,” said Mark Marshall, chairman, NBCU global advertising & partnerships.

T-Mobile, which has been a sponsor of Saturday Night Live for the past two seasons, is expanding its current relationship for the 50th anniversary.

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels. 

Advertisers are looking to reach the right audiences and tell their stories inside compelling content, Karen Kovacs, president of client partnerships at NBCUniversal Advertising and Partnerships, tells B+C.

NBCU is set up to respond to both of those needs during the upfront, Kovacs says.

“Our partners want to tell stories with our stories to the right strategic audiences,” she said. “It’s really nice to be able to deliver on both the premium content piece as well as having the tech innovations and the scale” they need to do the job.

In terms of content, NBCU has some big tentpoles coming up, starting with the Paris Summer Olympics.

“You’re going to see a lot of innovation as to how we’re storytelling around the Olympics,” she said.

After the Olympics, NBCU is in the market selling sponsorships for the 50th anniversary of Saturday Night Live.  The celebration will include a Friday-night concert at Radio City Music Hall right before the 50th anniversary broadcast.

Some key sponsors have already bought SNL packages, Kovacs said.

“We’re going to kick off the celebration coming right out of the Olympics this summer,” she said. “It’s SNL. It’s multigenerational. The brand has tremendous influence on our culture.”

Sports will also continue to be driver for NBCU, which will have the Super Bowl in 2026. That year it will also have the Milan Winter Olympics and the World Cup on Telemundo.

NBCU has also been investing in technology to help advertisers identify the audiences the will help them reach their marketing goals.

“We’ve really seen an industry shift taking place with strategic audiences,” Kovacs said. “They are already making up half of our linear and streaming business and it continues to grow.”

NBCU recently launched its one-platform total audiences, which uses artificial intelligence to help find strategic audiences at scale and forecast the size of those audiences across linear and streaming.

In the new media environment, tech companies are not only competing with video advertising, but increasingly participating in the upfront.

“We think we’re in a really interesting position,” Kovacs said. “We sort of stand alone in that we are a media powerhouse and we have tech prowess.”

Much of NBCU’s advertising innovation has originated with its Peacock streaming service.

Peacock has been expanding the amount of shoppable content it streams.

It is also going to be launching a product called virtual concessions, which gives viewers an opportunity to shop for food, beverages and snacks so they don’t have to leave the viewing experience.

Kovacs said it is pretty early to predict how the upfront market will go.

“Q4 looked pretty good,“ she said. “We saw some strengthening in the marketplace.” 

The strength of Olympic advertising has NBCU feeling optimistic because the Paris Games are on track to generate the most ad revenue in the history of the Olympics, and NBCU has already set a record for digital revenue.

NBCU also sees positive trend in some product categories, with improvement in consumer packaged goods and pharmaceuticals, Kovacs said.

Travel is sort of evening out, and the tech category is lagging a bit and hasn’t fully bounced back,” she said.

Kristen Wiig hosts Saturday Night Live for the fifth time on April 6. Wiig stars in and executive produces Palm Royale, which premieres March 20 on Apple TV Plus. She was in the cast of SNL from 2005 to 2012. Wiig’s films include Ghostbusters, Wonder Woman 1984 and The Martian. 

British singer-songwriter Raye is the musical guest that night, her first appearance on SNL. Her debut album is “My 21st Century Blues.” 

Before Wiig and Raye, Ramy Youssef hosts SNL for the first time March 30. His standup special Ramy Youssef: More Feelings debuts on HBO March 23. His comedy Ramy had three seasons on Hulu. 

Rapper Travis Scott is the musical guest that night, his second time on SNL. His latest album is called “Utopia.”

After Wiig and Raye, Ryan Gosling will make his third appearance as host on April 13. He’s in the movie The Fall Guy, in theaters May 3. He also played Ken in Barbie.  

Chris Stapleton is the musical guest April 13, his third time. His new album is called “Higher” and he’s headlining the “All-American Road Show” tour. 

In season 49, SNL airs on NBC and streams live on Peacock. All previous seasons are on Peacock too. 

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels. 

Ayo Edebiri, who plays Sydney on the FX series The Bear, will host Saturday Night Live for the first time February 3. Edebiri won best actress in a comedy at the Golden Globes and best supporting actress in a comedy at the Emmy Awards this month. At the Emmys, she described The Bear as “a show about family and found family and real family.” 

Jennifer Lopez will make her fourth appearance as SNL musical guest February 3. Her album This Is Me … Now and her film This Is Me … Now: A Love Story, will be released February 16. The latter will be on Prime Video. 

As has previously been reported, Dakota Johnson hosts SNL January 27 and Justin Timberlake is the musical guest. 

SNL airs on NBC and streams live on Peacock. Peacock has all 49 seasons of the show. 

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels.    

New episodes of Saturday Night Live return on NBC January 20. Jacob Elordi hosts that night, his first time. Elordi is in the films Priscilla and Saltburn. 

Also making a first appearance on SNL is musical guest Renee Rapp. A singer-songwriter, Rapp appears in the film Mean Girls. 

Dakota Johnson hosts the show for the second time January 27. She is in the film Madame Web, which arrives in theaters Feb. 14.  

Justin Timberlake is the musical guest that night, his fifth time on SNL. 

SNL will also air an original episode February 3, though the guests have not been announced. 

In addition to the broadcast on NBC, SNL streams live on Peacock. The show’s 49 seasons appear on Peacock. 

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels.

Emma Stone hosts Saturday Night Live December 2, her fifth time as host. Noah Kahan is the musical guest that night, his first time on the show. 

Stone is in the movie Poor Things, which is released December 8. She’s also in The Curse on Showtime. Her past films include La La Land, The Amazing Spider-Man and The Help. 

Kahan is nominated for Best New Artist at the 2024 Grammy Awards. 

A week later, Adam Driver hosts the show for the fourth time. His movie Ferrari is in theaters December 25. After making his name on Girls, his film work includes Frances Ha, Paterson and playing Kylo Ren in various Star Wars movies. 

Olivia Rodrigo is the musical guest December 9, her second time on SNL. Rodrigo’s sophomore album is called “Guts.”

Former SNL cast member Kate McKinnon hosts for the first time December 16. She plays Weird Barbie in the film Barbie. McKinnon was a cast member on SNL 2012 to 2022. 

Billie Eilish is the musical guest December 16, her third time. 

SNL is on NBC and streams live on Peacock. It is in season 49. 

The show is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels.

The end of the writers strike and the return of original shows to late night have been a boon for advertisers, according to EDO, which tracks the effectiveness of ad campaigns.

The season 49 premiere of NBC’s Saturday Night Live was the show’s most effective episode for advertisers since EDO began tracking engagement in 2015.

With former SNL cast member turned Taco Bell spokesman Pete Davidson as host, consumers were 102% more likely to engage with ads, and the show was 8.5% more effective than the next most-engaging episode on a per-person per-second basis.

The show also got a boost from the appearance of power couple Taylor Swift and Jason Kelce. 

“SNL's strong performance for advertisers highlights a continued Swift Effect with further star power drawn from guest host Pete Davidson and musical guest Ice Spice, who are all having cultural moments,” EDO said. “The greater ad effectiveness is a result of consumers' hunger for new premium programming and massive star power.” 

Previously, the most-engaging SNL episode aired on November 12, 2016, a few days after the presidential election. The episode was hosted by comedian Dave Chappelle and featured Kate McKinnon as Hillary Clinton playing Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah on the piano. 

Season 49 of Saturday Night Live kicks off on NBC October 14, and Pete Davidson is the host. 

Davidson spent eight seasons on SNL before departing in 2022. It’s his first time hosting. 

Ice Spice is the musical guest that night, her first time on SNL. She was named Best New Artist at the MTV Video Music Awards last month.  

On October 21, Bad Bunny does double duty as host and musical guest. His latest album is Un Verano Sin Ti.

Davidson is currently on a standup tour throughout the U.S. and Canada. He and John Mulaney are performing in Gary, Indiana, on Friday, October 6. 

The entire cast from last season returns to SNL and Chloe Troast joins as a featured player. 

Besides airing on NBC, SNL streams live on Peacock. Seasons 1-48 are on the streaming platform.  

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels.   

Quinta Brunson, creator of Abbott Elementary, hosts Saturday Night Live for the first time April 1. Lil Yachty is the musical guest that night for the first time. 

Besides the show creator, Brunson is executive producer, writer and star of Abbott Elementary on ABC.

Lil Yacht’s latest album is called Let’s Start Here.

Molly Shannon hosts SNL for the second time April 8. She’s in the movie A Good Person and is on the HBO Max show The Other Two. She has a memoir called Hello, Molly!

Shannon was an SNL cast member from 1995 to 2001. 

Jonas Brothers are the musical guest April 8, their third time on the show. Their new album, The Album, comes out May 12. 

Ana de Armas will host SNL for the first time April 15. De Armas stars in Ghosted, premiering April 21 on Apple TV Plus. Her movie work includes Blonde, No Time to Die and Knives Out.  

Karol G will make her first appearance as musical guest. Her newest album is called “Mañana Será Bonito.” 

Airing on NBC, Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels. ■

Woody Harrelson hosts Saturday Night Live February 25, Travis Kelce does so March 4, and Jenna Ortega hosts the NBC program March 11. 

Harrelson has hosted four times previously. He made his name on Cheers and was in True Detective. His films include White Men Can’t Jump, Natural Born Killers, LBJ and The Hunger Games franchise. Harrelson’s movie Champions premieres March 10. 

Jack White is the musical guest February 25, his fourth time as a solo act, with one more as part of the White Stripes.

Kelce plays tight end for the Super Bowl champ Kansas City Chiefs. It will be his first time hosting.    

Kelsea Ballerini is the musical guest March 4, her first time on SNL. 

Ortega is the star of Netflix series Wednesday. Her movie Scream VI comes out March 10. March 11 will be her first time hosting SNL.  

The 1975 is the musical guest on SNL March 11. The English band was the musical guest one other time.  

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels. ■

Pedro Pascal hosts Saturday Night Live February 4, with Coldplay the musical guest. Star of HBO’s The Last of Us and Disney Plus’s The Mandalorian, Pascal will host SNL for the first time. 

HBO ordered a second season of The Last of Us, which debuted January 15, and season three of The Mandalorian starts March 1. 

Coldplay is playing the show for the seventh time. The band is on tour behind its “Music Of The Spheres” album. 

As was previously announced, Michael B. Jordan hosts Saturday Night Live January 28, with Lil Baby the musical guest. 

SNL airs on NBC and streams on Peacock. The show won the 2022 Emmy for best variety sketch series. 

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels. ■

Aubrey Plaza will host Saturday Night Live January 21, and Sam Smith will be the musical guest. Plaza made her name in Parks and Recreation on NBC and was in the most recent season of The White Lotus on HBO. She’s also in Emily the Criminal on Netlflix, and Little Demon on FXX.

It is Plaza’s first time hosting, and Smith’s third time on as musical guest.

On January 28, Michael B. Jordan hosts SNL, with Lil Baby the musical guest. Jordan directs and stars in film Creed III, which is out March 3. It is his hosting debut, and Lil Baby’s first time as musical guest.

On NBC, Saturday Night Live won the 2022 Emmy for Outstanding Variety Sketch Series.

The show is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels. ■

Cecily Strong announced her departure from Saturday Night Live December 17. Appearing as her character Cathy Anne on Weekend Update, she explained the reason why she is leaving. “Turns out, prison,” she told anchor Michael Che. 

“Everybody has to go to jail at some point, and it’s just my time now, but I feel really lucky that I got to spend so many of the best moments of my life with these people that I love so much,” Strong added. 

Strong joined SNL in 2012. She anchored Weekend Update with Seth Meyers in 2013. 

Strong’s characters include Cathy Ann, Girl You Wish You Hadn't Started a Conversation With at a Party and Judge Jeanine Pirro. 

As the episode concluded, host Austin Butler and the cast serenaded Strong with Elvis Presley’s “Blue Christmas.”

Strong hosted the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in 2015 and stars in Apple TV Plus series Schmigadoon. ■

Saturday Night Live cast member Chris Redd has departed the sketch show. Redd has been with Saturday Night Live since fall 2017. 

A statement from Redd ran in The New York Times: “Being a part of ‘S.N.L’ has been the experience of a lifetime. Five years ago, I walked into 30 Rock knowing that this was an amazing opportunity for growth. Now, with friends who have become family and memories I will cherish forever, I’m grateful to Lorne Michaels and to the entire ‘S.N.L.’ organization. From the bottom of my heart, I can’t thank you all enough.”

Redd played Kanye West, Will Smith and New York Mayor Eric Adams, among others, on SNL. 

Redd was also in the cast of NBC comedy Kenan, with SNL cast member Kenan Thompson, and Netflix comedy Disjointed. Both have been canceled. 

Following the departures of Kate McKinnon, Aidy Bryant and Pete Davidson, among others, SNL announced four new hires last week: Marcello Hernandez, Molly Kearney, Michael Longfellow and Devon Walker. 

Season 48 begins October 1. ■

Miles Teller is the host on the season 48 premiere of Saturday Night Live on NBC Oct. 1. Teller is in Top Gun: Maverick. It is the actor’s first time hosting SNL. His other film work includes Fantastic Four and Only the Brave. 

Kendrick Lamar is the musical guest on that episode, his third time on the show. 

Brendan Gleeson hosts for the first time Oct. 8. He stars in the film The Banshees of Inisherin. Willow is the musical guest that day for the first time. 

On Oct. 15, Megan Thee Stallion does double duty as host and musical guest. She’s never hosted SNL before, and has been the musical guest twice. Her latest album, “Traumazine”, came out Aug. 12. 

Other stars who’ve hosted and been musical guest on the same night include Paul Simon, Lizzo and Billie Eilish. 

Four performers have been added to the cast this season: Marcello Hernandez, Molly Kearney, Michael Longfellow and Devon Walker.

Saturday Night Live won the 2022 Emmy for Outstanding Variety Sketch Series. The show is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels. ■

Four featured players have been named to the cast on Saturday Night Live. Marcello Hernandez, Molly Kearney, Michael Longfellow and Devon Walker join the show for season 48. The season premiere is on NBC Oct. 1.

Hernandez is a comedian, writer and actor of Cuban/Dominican descent. From Miami, he was selected as a Just for Laughs New Face of Comedy in 2022.

Kearney was selected for Comedy Central’s Up Next showcase in 2019. From Cleveland, they can be seen in Prime Video’s A League of Their Own and Disney Plus’s The Mighty Ducks.

Longfellow has been featured on Netflix’s Introducing... showcase and NBC’s Bring the Funny. He’s from Phoenix.

Walker was selected for Comedy Central’s Up Next showcase in 2017. From Austin, he has written for Freeform’s Everything’s Trash and Netflix’s Big Mouth.

Cast members who departed after last season include Aidy Bryant, Pete Davidson, Kate McKinnon, Kyle Mooney, Melissa Villaseñor, Alex Moffat and Aristotle Athari.

Saturday Night Live won the 2022 Emmy for outstanding variety sketch series. The show is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels. ■

Saturday Night Live wrapped up its 47th season on NBC this past Saturday. And while the biggest constant for the long-running sketch comedy show is that it’s always changing, it also remains a consistent draw for both audiences and advertisers.

Below, we take a look at how SNL performed by TV ad impressions and its social video viewership, using network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv, and online video views via Tubular Labs.

A Top 15 Program for NBC by TV Ad Impressions

SNL has been an institution for NBC for nearly five decades. For its 47th season — October 2, 2021 through May 21, 2022 — the program was No. 15 by TV ad impressions delivered, with over 3.0 billion, or 1.39% of the total on NBC during first-airing programming, according to data from iSpot. 

The show stacks up well when compared to programs appearing across all four major broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC) as well. Across its 47th season, Saturday Night Live was No. 4 among comedy and variety shows on the Big Four, with 11.0% of impressions, and the only one in the top five to air just once per week. Narrowing things to just primetime and late fringe p.m. dayparts on those networks, SNL sits at No. 41 for non-sports or news programs — with 0.94% of impressions. 

Which brands were the beneficiaries of those impressions? Progressive was the most-seen advertiser during SNL all season, with 1.79% of impressions, followed by Disney Plus (1.62%), Kohl's (1.60%), T-Mobile (1.35%), and Target (1.35%). Department stores led the way by industries, accounting for 6.89% of impressions during the season, but theatrical movies (6.70%) and streaming services (5.93%) were close behind. 

The entertainment emphasis for advertisers also shows the value of SNL’s audience for both streaming subscribers and moviegoers. And interestingly, a large portion of those impressions were actually for services and movies not owned by NBCUniversal. Disney Plus, Warner Bros., and Apple TV Plus all had more impressions during the show than Universal Pictures or Peacock did. The six most-seen streaming or theatrical release ads during SNL this season were all non-NBCU entities as well, led by MGM’s spot for Licorice Pizza.

Over 5 Billion Minutes Watched Across Facebook and YouTube

For years, Saturday Night Live has leaned into the evolution of its viewership, uploading sketches to social video platforms to encourage audiences to watch and share individual sketches — whether they actually tuned in when it originally aired or not. 

Over the course of the show’s 47th season, global viewers watched over 5 billion minutes of SNL highlights on YouTube and Facebook, according to Tubular Audience Ratings. That includes a monthly high of more than 813 million minutes in October 2021 alone. Since the start of 2022, audiences have been tuning in for an average of more than 500 million minutes across those two platforms each month. About 20% of those minutes watched are coming from viewers under 25 years old.

In April 2022, SNL was 13th among U.S. broadcast, cable, radio and film creators by minutes watched, coming in behind Jimmy Kimmel Live (564.2 million minutes) and ahead of Inside Edition (431.4 million). Among NBCU-owned creators, Saturday Night Live was only behind MSNBC (over 1 billion minutes), Telemundo’s Caso Cerrado (827.3 million) and NBC News (801.9 million).

Across YouTube, Facebook and Twitter, SNL had 794 million video views this season, led by October’s Squid Game spoof, with over 13.6 million views. Of the 10 most-watched videos uploaded by the show this season, four featured Kim Kardashian (who hosted in October), and six featured now-outgoing cast member – and Kim Kardashian’s current boyfriend – Pete Davidson. 

Just three of the top 10 videos were pre-filmed sketches, led by the aforementioned Squid Game segment. While “Weekend Update” has been one of the show’s most popular elements for some time, just one of the show’s top 20 social videos were from that segment (this bit about Will Smith and Chris Rock received 7.3 million views). Just one of SNL’s 20 most-watched – this “Republican or Not” skit with 4.6 million views – was inherently political in nature. ■

Kate McKinnon, Pete Davidson, Aidy Bryant and Kyle Mooney have departed Saturday Night Live. The finale for season 47 was on NBC May 21.

McKinnon and Bryant joined the show in 2012. Mooney came on board in 2013 and Davidson in 2014. 

McKinnon is in the Peacock series Joe vs. Carole. Her SNL characters include boozy Sheila Sovage, cat shelter volunteer Barbara and cop Les Dykawitz. 

Davidson is behind the Peacock comedy Bupkis. On SNL, he’s played ultra-doofus Chad, rapper Guaplord and Jasmine’s partner Aladdin. 

Bryant executive produces and stars in the Hulu comedy Shrill. Her SNL characters include Girlfriends Talk Show co-host Morgan and Tinker Bell’s half sister Tonker, and she portrayed Ted Cruz. 

Mooney’s TV credits include Arrested Development and Rick and Morty. He’s played Axl Rose, Criss Angel and Woody Allen on SNL.

Natasha Lyonne hosted the season finale. ■

Natasha Lyonne will host the season finale of Saturday Night Live on NBC May 21. It is her first time hosting.

Lyonne is the co-creator, star and director of Russian Doll on Netflix. Season two premiered last month. She will star in and executive produce Peacock’s forthcoming Poker Face.

Japanese Breakfast is the musical guest May 21, the band’s first time on SNL.      

On May 14, Selena Gomez hosts and Post Malone provides the music. Gomez is in the cast of Only Murders in the Building.

Besides airing on NBC, Saturday Night Live streams on Peacock.

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels. ■

Comedian John Mulaney hosts Saturday Night Live February 26, his fifth time hosting. His standup tour, “John Mulaney: From Scratch”, resumes March 11. Mulaney spent four years in the SNL writers’ room starting in 2008. 

LCD Soundsystem will be the musical guest in the February 26 episode, the band’s second time on SNL. 

Oscar Isaac hosts the show March 5 for the first time. He stars in Moon Knight, which premieres on Disney Plus March 30. 

Charli XCX is the musical guest that night. 

Zoë Kravitz hosts for the first time March 12. She’s in The Batman, which premieres March 4. Rosalía will be the musical guest.

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels. ■

Billie Eilish will host Saturday Night Live on NBC Dec. 11, and will be the musical guest as well. Holder of seven Grammys, Eilish’s new album is called “Happier Than Ever.” It is her first time as SNL host and second time as musical guest. 

Paul Rudd hosts for the fifth time Dec. 18. Rudd stars in Ghostbusters: Afterlife and the Apple TV Plus series The Shrink Next Door. 

Charli XCX will be the musical guest Dec. 18. 

Simu Liu, star of Marvel movie Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, hosts SNL Nov. 20, with Saweetie as the musical guest.    

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels. ■

Six years ago, several embarrassing viral audio clips emerged, featuring befuddled Comcast customers desperately trying to cancel their service, only to be flummoxed by a confounding shell game of transfers, lengthy holds and inexplicable badgering from reps trying convince them to upgrade their service, not cancel it. 

The ghastly optics convinced Comcast to embark on what it marketed as a $350 million customer service face lift.

In regard to Comcast and the rest of the U.S. cable and telecom industry, nothing as unseemly seems to have hit the social internet since that time. 

Nonetheless, the public image damage to the broader cable biz seems to be: when Saturday Night Live decides to skewer something in a sketch, it's usually a phenomenon or annoyance that's become relatable in a mainstream way. 

And unfortunately for Charter Communications and its Spectrum brand, Saturday night's latest SNL sketch featuring guest star Kieran Culkin, titled Cancelling Cable, doesn't feature Xfinity reps. 

Meh, these regional monopolists share so much. Might as well share awful reputations. 

Take a gander at the sketch below. 

Kieran Culkin, in the cast on HBO’s Succession, hosts Saturday Night Live on NBC for the first time Nov. 6. Ed Sheeran is the musical guest that night. 

Culkin plays Roman Roy on Succession, which began season three Oct. 17. 

Jonathan Majors, star of the film The Harder They Fall, hosts SNL Nov. 13. A western, The Harder They Fall is on Netflix Nov. 3. Taylor Swift is the musical guest on that episode, her fifth time on SNL. 

Simu Liu, star of Marvel movie Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings, hosts Nov. 20. Saweetie is the musical guest, for the first time, that night. Saweetie releases her debut album, Pretty Bitch Music, early in 2022. 

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels.

HBO Max has renewed its comedy series The Other Two for a third season, the network said Friday. 

The series, which ended its sophomore campaign Thursday (Sept. 23), stars Drew Tarver, Heléne Yorke, Case Walker, Ken Marino and Molly Shannon. The series is executive produced by former Saturday Night Live writers Chris Kelly and Sarah Schneider, along with Lorne Michaels and Andrew Singer.

“Chris Kelly and Sarah Schneider have created a sharp and poignant family story that is willing to show its characters' imperfections while making us laugh hysterically,” said HBO Max executive VP of original comedy and adult animation Suzanna Makkos. “It has been a true joy to welcome them and the cast to HBO Max, and I look forward to keeping them on hold with Brooke for the many conference calls to come next season.” 

Saturday Night Live starts season 47 Oct. 2 on NBC, with Owen Wilson hosting and Kacey Musgraves the musical guest. It is Wilson’s first time hosting. He’s in Loki on Disney Plus, and his films include Bottle Rocket, Midnight in Paris and Wedding Crashers. 

Musgraves was the show’s musical guest once before. 

A week later, Kim Kardashian West hosts for the first time and Halsey provides the music. 

Rami Malek hosts for the first time Oct. 16, with Young Thug the musical guest, and Jason Sudeikis hosts Oct. 23. A cast member on SNL until his departure in 2013, it is Sudeikis’s first time hosting. He co-created Ted Lasso and stars in the show. 

Brandi Carlile is musical guest that night, her first time on SNL.

Shows are live streamed on Peacock. Peacock has every season of SNL, which won eight Emmy Awards in 2021, including Outstanding Variety Sketch Series.

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels.

The main headline coming out of the Television Academy’s Emmys nomination announcement Tuesday is the dominance of the streaming services. With shows from streaming services representing eight of the top 10 most nominated shows, it’s clear that the online platform resonated with viewers, critics and Emmy voters.

With that said, there were a few highlights that traditional television distributors can hang their hats on heading into the Sept. 19 Emmy Awards show telecast. Here are several takeaways for cable and broadcast networks from Tuesday’s 73rd Emmys nominations announcement.

Read Also: Streaming Shows 'The Crown,' 'The Mandalorian,' 'WandaVision' Lead Emmy Awards Nominations 

• Along with 18 nominations, HBO’s recently cancelled Lovecraft Country became the first series ever to have Black actors nominated in both the drama best actor (Jonathan Rogers) and best actress (Jurnee Smollet) categories. The horror-themed show also has the distinction of having Black actors nominated in six of the seven drama acting categories. Overall, actors of color drew four of the six nominations in the best actor in a drama series category and half of the nominations for the best actress in a drama series award. 

Read Also: 'Lovecraft Country' Creator Outlines New Season Plot Despite Series Cancellation

• NBC’s Saturday Night Live continues to rack up Emmy nominations. The late-night series drew 21 nominations — one off its record 22 nods for a variety show garnered in 2017— and now has a record 306th Emmy nominations overall. It was one of the few bright spots for the broadcast networks, which found itself either shut out or with only one nomination in the outstanding drama, comedy and limited series categories. NBC led all broadcast networks with 46 nominations.

• HBO’s A Black Lady Sketch Show is the only show that stands in the way of Saturday Night Live winning its fifth straight Emmy in the Outstanding Variety Sketch Series category as only two shows qualified for the award.  

• FX was the most nominated basic cable network with 16, nine of which were generated by Pose, including a lead actress in a drama nomination for MJ Rodriguez — the first ever in the category for a lead trans person. VH1 (11) and National Geographic (10) also generated double-digit nominations. Overall 16 cable networks garnered Emmy nominations, matching the number of online services with Emmy nods. 

• HBO’s Last Week Tonight with John Oliver will look to make it six Emmy wins in a row in the Outstanding Talk Series category, while VH1’s RuPaul’s Drag Race will go for four straight wins in the Outstanding Competition Program category.  

With Saturday Night Live finishing its 46th season on May 22, we’re taking a look at the advertising and social video trends around the iconic NBC show, with insights from iSpot.tv and Tubular Labs.

In total, new episodes of Saturday Night Live generated 3.1 billion TV ad impressions this season, according to iSpot. While this represented a 12.4% increase from the previous season, it’s worth keeping in mind season 45 was impacted by COVID-related shutdowns. By comparison, season 46 saw a 7.75% decrease in TV ad impressions compared to the last “normal” season, which was its 44th. 

Top brands by TV ad impressions for SNL’s 46th season included State Farm (61.4 million TV ad impressions), Kohl’s (59.2 million), Verizon (58.4 million), T-Mobile (56.5 million) and McDonald’s (55.3 million), according to iSpot. State Farm, T-Mobile and Kohl’s were also in the top 10 ranking for brands by impressions for the previous season.

Also Read: NBC Shares Upfront Plans

The most-seen (non-network promo) spot during SNL’s 46th season was Verizon’s “The 5G Frontier,” with 38.6 million TV ad impressions. Per iSpot’s Ace Metrix, this ad scored above the norm for all industries for aspects including watchability, information and product desire. The No. 2 ad by impressions during SNL’s 46th season was “Parker Promo” from State Farm, with 29.5 million TV ad impressions. According to Ace Metrix survey data, 29% of respondents considered the characters to be the single best thing about the ad. 

Of course, the TV screen is just one way that viewers engage with SNL — social video has proved to be an extremely effective way for NBC to reach a broader audience for the show. According to social video analytics company Tubular Labs, SNL videos on YouTube have racked up 2.1 billion views this season from 374 uploads. In April, Saturday Night Live had 17.4 million global unique viewers across YouTube and Facebook, with 678.8 million minutes watched globally, per Tubular Audience Ratings. And looking at just the U.S. audience in April, SNL was the third most-watched entertainment creator across YouTube and Facebook, with 523.7 million minutes watched from U.S. viewers in April.

The top video from this season by YouTube views was the premiere’s cold open featuring the first debate between Joe Biden (portrayed by Jim Carrey) and Donald Trump (Alec Baldwin), with 31.2 million views. Elon Musk’s monologue was another big social video for SNL, landing at No. 8 for the show’s top YouTube videos with 9 million views, 7.8 million of which occurred in the first three days, according to Tubular’s V3 metric (which measures views within three days of publishing). 

Musk’s guest-hosting stint helped spark a wave of YouTube uploads from independent accounts as well: From May 8-10, there were over 3,000 videos uploaded across social video platforms related to Elon Musk (some of which were about Musk generally — meaning they didn’t necessarily reference his SNL gig). This was a 320% increase from the previous weekend, which had only 760 Musk-related videos uploaded.

Many of the top SNL-related videos by views (from all accounts) for the May 8-10 weekend were related to what Musk said about Dogecoin during his episode, such as this one, with 1.1 million views to date. It’s the No. 2 YouTube video related to Musk that was uploaded the weekend of his SNL appearance.

Anya Taylor-Joy will make her Saturday Night Live hosting debut for the season finale May 22 on NBC. Taylor-Joy stars in Netflix’s The Queen’s Gambit. Based on the Walter Tevis novel, The Queen’s Gambit is about an orphan, portrayed by Taylor-Joy, who goes on to be a chess superstar. It debuted on Netflix in October. 

Lil Nas X will make his first appearance on SNL as the musical guest that night. 

Elon Musk hosts Saturday Night Live May 8, his first time hosting the show. Musk is CEO of Tesla and chief engineer of SpaceX. 

Miley Cyrus will be the musical guest that night. It will be her sixth time as the musical guest. 

Keegan-Michael Key will host SNL for the first time May 15. He’s in musical comedy Schmigadoon!, which premieres on Apple TV Plus July 16. Key was previously on Key & Peele and hosts game show Game On! on CBS. 

Olivia Rodrigo will be the musical guest when Key hosts. 

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels.

Dan Levy, co-creator and star of Emmy magnet Schitt’s Creek, will host NBC’s Saturday Night Live Feb. 6. It will be Levy’s first time hosting SNL. Phoebe Bridgers is the musical guest that night. 

Schitt’s Creek got nine Emmys in September, with four for Levy. 

John Krasinski, who starred in The Office and directed and starred in film A Quiet Place, hosts Jan. 30, with Machine Gun Kelly the musical guest. It will be Krasinski’s first time hosting, and Kelly’s first time on the show as well. 

Also Read: 'SNL' Thrives in Politically Charged 2020

Regina King hosts SNL for the first time Feb. 13. Her TV work includes Southland and American Crime, and she directed new film One Night in Miami. Nathaniel Rateliff is on the musical stage Feb. 13. 

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels. 

Every season of SNL is now streaming on Peacock.

NBC’s Saturday Night Live generally thrives in election years, and 2020 appeared to be yet another example of that lift.

On the year, SNL has 2.5 billion views on YouTube — which is about 7% lower than last year but also featured over 200 fewer video uploads. According to Tubular Audience Ratings, SNL had 20.7 million unique viewers across YouTube and Facebook in November 2020 — good for 116th across global creators on the two platforms. With 973.4 million minutes watched, SNL was 25th overall globally as well. 

Riding political content, October was the show’s best month of the year, with 395.8 million views and over 1.1 billion minutes watched.

Further utilizing Tubular, V3 data (views in the first three days since uploading) allows us to compare SNL’s YouTube videos across all of 2020, to see which were most popular in the days immediately following airing on TV. To little surprise, most of the top videos were politically focused, though there were some exceptions.

Top 10 SNL videos of 2020, by V3:

1. First Debate Cold Open (16.2 million)
2. Biden Victory Cold Open (13.3 million)
3. Dr. Anthony Fauci Cold Open (11.9 million)
4. Undercover Boss: Where Are They Now? (11.1 million)
5. VP Fly Debate Cold Open (10.5 million)
6. Dave Chappelle Stand-Up Monologue (9.7 million)
7. Final Debate Cold Open (8.7 million)
8. Dueling Town Halls Cold Open (7.5 million)
9. Coronavirus Cold Open (5.4 million)
10. Uncle Ben (5.3 million)

Notably, eight of the top 10 videos were from the current season, which started in the fall. And all but one (“Uncle Ben”) was politically focused. Dave Chappelle was also in two of the videos: his stand-up monologue on the Saturday following the U.S. presidential election and the aforementioned “Uncle Ben” skit. Additionally, five of the top 15 videos by V3 for the entire year came from Chappelle’s Nov. 8 hosting gig.

SNL’s success wasn’t limited to social video, either. In a year where TV tentpole events were hard to come by, the show still managed to succeed, especially once the most recent season got started and leaned all the way into content around the upcoming election.

Looking at live, new episodes only via iSpot, estimated TV ad spend was up 102.8% during SNL in 2020 (for the period from Jan. 1 through Dec. 14), landing at $107.1 million. TV ad impressions during the show were also up 18.5%, to 3.20 billion. The show was 13th by impressions among all shows on NBC in the timeframe, vs. 23rd in 2019.

Brands benefited from the uptick in interest as well, clearly, based on the ad impressions increase. Of the top 10 brands by impressions during SNL in 2020, six saw year-over-year increases — led by Verizon, also the most-seen advertisers, at 349%. As a result of that and T-Mobile’s own 33% increase during the show, wireless ad impressions were up 95.7% for SNL this year, to lead all industries. Verizon also had the most-seen ad during SNL, with “The 5G Frontier” garnering 37.6 million impressions.

The image below shows the top 10 brand advertisers during SNL ranked by impressions, plus year-over-year shifts.

Jason Bateman hosts NBC’s Saturday Night Live Dec. 5, and Morgan Wallen is the musical guest. A country singer, Wallen was to be the musical guest Oct. 10, but was replaced after violating COVID protocols. 

In early October, clips of Wallen appeared on social media that showed him drinking shots, kissing fans and mingling without a mask. 

Wallen’s new album is “Dangerous: The Double Album”. It will be his first time on the show. 

Bateman is on Netflix drama Ozark as director, producer and star. 

Dec. 12, Timothee Chalamet hosts the show, and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band are the musical guest. Chalamet’s movies include The French Dispatch and Dune. It is his hosting debut. 

Springsteen will appear for the third time. 

Dece. 19, the host is Kristen Wiig, a cast member on Saturday Night Live 2005 to 2012. Starring in Wonder Woman 1984, it is her fourth time hosting SNL. Dua Lipa is the musical guest for the second time. 

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels.

Comedian Dave Chappelle hosts Saturday Night Live on NBC Nov. 7, his second time hosting. Foo Fighters are the musical guest. 

Chappelle hosted SNL after the 2016 presidential election. His most recent standup special is Dave Chappelle: Sticks & Stones on Netflix. He previously was on Chappelle’s Show on Comedy Central. 

Foo Fighters have been the musical guest on SNL seven times. The band, fronted by Dave Grohl, is celebrating the 25th anniversary of its self-titled debut album. 

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels.

The cast includes Beck Bennett, Aidy Bryant, Michael Che, Pete Davidson, Kenan Thompson, Colin Jost, Kate McKinnon, Chris Redd and Cecily Strong. 

The show is broadcast live from Studio 8H in New York’s Rockefeller Center. 

Chris Rock will host Saturday Night Live when the new season premieres Oct. 3. It will be the comedian’s third time hosting the program. Megan Thee Stallion makes her SNL musical guest debut that same day. 

Saturday Night Live starts the new season, its 46th, with five consecutive shows starting Oct. 3 on NBC. 

Jim Carrey will play Joe Biden in the new season. 

Rock was a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1990 to 1993. His films include Top Five and I Think I Love My Wife. Rock stars in the new season of Fargo, on FX starting Sept. 27. 

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels.

Jim Carrey will play Joe Biden in the new season of Saturday Night Live. The series premieres Oct. 3 on NBC. 

Saturday Night Live is planning to have what it calls a “limited” audience at Rockefeller Center this season amid the pandemic. Season 46 begins with five weekly programs. 

Carrey got his start on In Living Color. His films include Dumb and Dumber, Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, The Truman Show and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. He was on the Showtime series Kidding. 

Alec Baldwin portrays Biden’s adversary for the White House, President Trump. 

SNL has added three featured players: Laruen Holt from Upright Citizens Brigade, Punkie Johnson, whose credits include Space Force and Adam Ruins Everything, and Andrew Dismukes, an SNL staff writer since season 43. 

AT&T’s streaming service HBO Max said it made a six-episode order of a new sketch comedy show starring Michael Che of Saturday Night Live.

Each episode will look at a theme or incident and use sketches or vignettes to illustrate “what it feels like to experience this from a black vantage point,” HBO Max said.

“Michael brings a distinct comedic perspective as he illustrates the uncomfortable truths across multiple topics,” said Suzanna Makkos, executive VP of Original Comedy and Animation for HBO Max. “We look forward to sharing his unique vision and necessary point of view with our audiences.”

“I’m really excited to be working on this show with HBO Max,” said Che. “It’s a project I’ve been thinking about for a while and we have a lot of sketches we want to shoot so please wear your masks so that we can go into production.”

Untitled Michael Che Project is produced by Universal TV, a division of Universal Studio Group, and Broadway Video, with Che, Lorne Michaels, and Erin Doyle serving as executive producers.

Saturday Night Live, helmed by Lorne Michaels, is a big part of NBCU’s Peacock streaming platform, which launches nationally on Wednesday.

Showtime has commissioned a pilot order for a new half hour comedy series executive produced by Vanessa Bayer and Jeremy Beiler (Saturday Night Live), the premium service announced Monday. 

The series, Big Deal, is a comedy in which Bayer plays a character -- inspired by her own past -- who overcame childhood leukemia to achieve her lifelong dream of landing a job as a QVC host, according to Showtime. Jessi Klein (Inside Amy Schumer, Black Monday) will also serve as executive producer of the show.

“Vanessa Bayer is such a sharp and joyful comic talent, and in Big Deal she mines the story of her own life to deliver hard comedy with deep resonance,” said Gary Levine, Showtime president of entertainment in statement. 

 “In Jeremy, Jessi and Michael (Showalter), we have a veritable All-Star team who never fail to deliver smart, subversive and funny comedy – which Big Deal certainly promises to be,” he added.

Netflix garnered more Creative Arts Emmy Awards wins than any other content distributor during a ceremony last night, according to the Television Academy.

The streaming service won 15 Creative Arts Emmy Awards Saturday night in the first of two ceremonies celebrating technical, guest acting roles and other categories. The second Creative Emmy Awards ceremony will take place tonight (Sept. 15).

National Geographic finished second with eight wins -- seven for its documentary series Free Solo, which topped all shows, according the Television Academy. CNN, NBC, Fox, HBO, YouTube, CBS and VH1 also won multiple awards.

Other programs with multiple wins included Love, Death & Robots, Our Planet and Queer Eye (Netflix); Age of Sail (YouTube), RuPaul’s Drag Race (VH1), Saturday Night Live (NBC), Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown and United Shades of America with W. Kamau Bell (CNN); Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO), and Rent (Fox).

Also last night, 97-year old legendary producer Norman Lear became the oldest winner in Emmy history, taking home the statuette for Outstanding Live Variety Special for ABC's  Live in Front of a Studio Audience: Norman Lear's All in the Family and The Jeffersons, a re-staging of two of Lear's iconic 1970's comedies with contemporary casts.

A complete list of 2019 Creative Arts Emmy winners can be found here. The 71st Emmy Awards will air on Fox Sept. 22.

HBO will say goodbye to its Emmy award-winning comedy series Veep beginning next month, the network said Friday.

The Julia Louis-Dreyfus starrer will return for a seven-episode, seventh season on March 31, the network announced during its Television Critics Association Tour panel session for the series. Dreyfus has won six Emmys in the best female comedy category for her role as politician Selina Meyer in Veep.

“I was so overcome with a joy and grief mashup as this show ended and caught me by surprise,’ she said via satellite during the Veep TCA session. “We’ve been through a lot as a group with illness and losing people — it's been an enormous journey. Saying goodbye to it is a very hard thing to do even though it was our decision to do it.”

The network also announced it will launch a new Spanish-language series, Los Espookys, from Saturday Night Live stars Fred Armisen and Lorne Michaels. The half-hour series follows a group of friends who turn their love for horror into a peculiar business, said network executives. 

Donald Glover, aka Childish Gambino, has been making major waves this week with his controversial music video for “This Is America.” Released on YouTube while Glover performed the song live during last weekend’s Saturday Night Live, the video has been driving passionate conversation with its extreme scenes of gun violence and its implicit commentary on the state of American society today, particularly in regard to race.

We worked with social video analytics company Tubular Labs and emotion measurement company Canvs to see exactly how people are reacting to this groundbreaking video.

According to Tubular, in its first three days of release on YouTube, the video generated a whopping 44.6 million views (as of this writing, it has over 64 million). And, it had a Tubular ER3 rating of 2.7x, meaning three days after upload, the video had an engagement rate that was 2.7 times higher compared to the YouTube average.

Data from Canvs reveals that there have been 54,566 Emotional Reactions (ERs) on YouTube since the video was posted May 5. “Video,” “song,” “America,” “message” and “dancing” have been some of the most-mentioned terms; the fact that “video” is outpacing “song” in the discussion goes to show just how powerful the visuals are, while “message” underscores that people are obsessed with what, exactly, Glover is saying about America.

One specific Emotional Reaction that stood out was “brilliance,” which accounted for 4.7% of reactions from fans, primarily driven by Donald Glover who viewers think is a genius — and that “This Is America” is a work of art. 

The primetime Emmy Awards ceremony is this Sunday, but this past weekend’s Creative Emmy Awards gave us a sneak peek into which shows and networks could be the big winners once all the Emmy envelopes are opened.

Not surprisingly, HBO led the pack with 19 Creative Emmy wins during ceremonies held this past Saturday and Sunday night, with Netflix’s 16 wins and NBC nine wins following close behind. HBO (111 nominations), Netflix (91) and NBC (64) were also the top three Emmy-nominated networks.

The top three Emmy-nominated shows also garnered the most creative Emmy wins. NBC’s venerable Saturday Night Live and HBO’s Westworld, which drew an industry-high 22 Emmy nominations --as well as Stranger Things, which drew a second-best 18 nominations –- each took home five Creative Emmy statuettes over the weekend.

Also among the big Creative Emmy award winners over the weekend were Adult Swim’s animated series Samurai Jack, Netflix’s Ava DuVernay-produced documentary 13thand HBO’s mini-series The Night Of, each with four Creative Emmy Award wins.

Of course, anything can and will most likely happen during CBS' primetime Emmys telecast Sunday, and it‘ll be interesting to see whether the frontrunners can retain their favored status and walk away with the lion’s share of primetime Emmy awards, or whether an underdog can pull off a major upset.

Networks With Multiple Creative Emmy Award Wins

NetworkTotal Awards

HBO                                                                          19

Netflix                                                                       16

NBC                                                                            9

ABC                                                                            7

Fox                                                                             5

Hulu                                                                           5

Adult Swim                                                                  4

CBS                                                                            4

FX Networks                                                                4

A&E                                                                            3

VH1                                                                            3

Amazon                                                                      2

BBC America                                                               2

ESPN                                                                          2

National Geographic                                                    2

The big winners of the 2017 Emmy Awards nominations were HBO and Netflix with their combined 200+ nominations, along with shows like This Is Us, Westworld and Saturday Night Live.

Diversity also took center stage in Los Angeles during Thursday’s Emmy’s nominations program as a record number of actors of color received nominations for their outstanding performances on the small screen, from Emmy veterans like Viola Davis, Regina King and Anthony Anderson to newcomers like Snoop Dogg and Donald Glover.

Some of the top Emmy nominated shows also featured multiple nominations for actors of color. HBO’s Westworld drew a scripted series-high 22 nominations, including nominations for Thandie Newton and Jeffrey Wright for best supporting actress and actor in a drama, respectively.

Sterling K. Brown – who won an Emmy last year for his role in FX’s People v. O.J. Simpson – was nominated in the lead actor in a drama series category along with Ron Cephas Jones for best supporting actor in a drama and Brian Tyree Henry for guest drama actor for their roles in the 11-time Emmy nominated drama This Is Us.

Both Westworld and This Is Us were also nominated for best drama series.

Related: Strong Rookie Class Vies for Emmy Nods

The record number of Emmy nominations for actors of color comes despite some arguably glaring Emmy snubs. Voters for the major series and acting categories showed no love for HBO’s Insecure and its star Issa Rae or Oprah Winfrey’s performance in the pay service’s original movie The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks – although the series is nominated in the best TV movie category. Also, last year’s Emmy winner in the best actor in a drama series category Rami Malek won’t be back to defend his title after not getting nominated for his starring role in USA’s Mr. Robot.

Still, there’s a lot for diversity champions to cheer about, even as a noticeable number of shows with lead actors of color are no longer on the air. Shows like Netflix’s The Get Down and Sense8, Fox’s Pitch, Hulu’s East Los High, WGN’s Underground, ABC’s American Crime and most recently NBC’s The Carmichael Show have all left broadcast, cable network and video streaming service lineups, taking with them some of the momentum the industry had been building with regards to showcasing diverse images and stories on screen.

As long as the industry continues to keep its focus on the inclusion of images and stories derived from a wide and diverse source of talented individuals, there will continue to be a large pool of deserving performances from which the TV academy can choose its best and brightest to honor.

RELATED: Strong Rookie Class Vies For Emmy Nods 

Cable and video streaming services dominated nominations for the 69th annual Emmy Awards, with several freshman series getting major nods, according to the Television Academy which announced the nominations this morning in Los Angeles. 

Overall HBO drew 111 nominations, up from last year’s 94 despite not having last year’s top Emmy-nominated show Game Of Thrones, which was ineligible for this year’s Emmy awards program. HBO was led by Westworld, which drew 22 nominations, tied with NBC’s Saturday Night Live for the most nominated show.

Netflix drew 91 nominations – nearly doubling the 54 it drew last year -- to finish second. NBC's 64 nominations was third followed by FX Networks' 55 nods.

Veteran shows Better Call Saul and House of Cards will battle a list of freshman shows for the best drama series statuette including Netflix’s The Crown and Stranger Things, NBC’s This Is Us, HBO’s Westworld and Hulu's The Handmaid's Tale, according to the Academy.

On the comedy front, FX’s freshman series Atlanta, ABC’s Blackish and Modern Family, Netflix’s Masters Of None and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, and HBO’s Silicon Valley will look to unseat last year’s winner Veep.

Cable networks swept the best limited series category with HBO’s Big Little Lies and The Night Of competing against FX Networks’ Fargo and FEUD: Bette and Joan. National Geographic’s Genius rounded out nominations in the category.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus will go for her sixth straight Emmy win in the lead actress in a comedy category for her role in HBO’s Veep, but will face stiff competition from 2017 Golden Globe winner in the category Tracee Ellis Ross (black-ish) as well as Jane Fonda and Lilly Tomlin (Netflix’s Grace And Frankie), Ellie Kemper (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt), Pamela Adlon (Better Things) and Allison Janney (Mom).

Jeffrey Tambor (Amazon’s Transparent) will also look to repeat in the lead actor in a comedy category against Donald Glover (Atlanta), Anthony Anderson (Black-ish), Aziz Ansari (Netflix’s Master Of None), Zach Galifianakis (FX’s Baskets), and William H. Macy (Showtime’s Shameless.) 

This Is Us’ Sterling K. Brown and Milo Ventimiglia will both compete for the Emmy in the lead actor in a drama series category along with Anthony Hopkins (Westworld), Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul), Matthew Rhys (The Americans), Liev Sherieber (Showtime’s Ray Donovan) and Kevin Spacey (House Of Cards).

In the lead actress in a drama category, newcomers Claire Foy (Netflix’s The Crown), Elisabeth Moss (Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale) and Evan Rachel Wood (Westworld) will vie against category veterans Viola Davis (ABC’s How To Get Away With Murder), Keri Russell (FX’s The Americans), and Robin Wright (House of Cards).

The Emmys Awards telecast will air live Sept. 17 on CBS. 

Below is a partial list of 2017 Emmy Nominations:

Drama Series

Better Call Saul(AMC)

The Crown(Netflix)

The Handmaid's Tale(Hulu)

Stranger Things(Netflix)

This Is Us(NBC)

Westworld(HBO)

Lead Actor in a Drama Series 

Bob Odenkirk - Better Call Saul(AMC)

Kevin Spacey - House of Cards(Netflix)

Liev Schreiber - Ray Donovan(Showtime)

Matthew Rhys - The Americans (FX)

Milo Ventimiglia - This Is Us(NBC)

Sterling K. Brown - This Is Us(NBC)

Anthony Hopkins – Westworld(HBO)

Lead Actress in a Drama Series

Robin Wright - House of Cards(Netflix)

Viola Davis - How to Get Away with Murder(ABC)

Keri Russell - The Americans(FX)

Claire Foy - The Crown(Netflix)

Elisabeth Moss - The Handmaid's Tale(Hulu)

Evan Rachel Wood – Westworld(HBO)

Supporting Actor in a Drama

Jonathan Banks - Better Call Saul(AMC)

Mandy Patinkin –Homeland(Showtime)

Michael Kelly - House of Cards(Netflix)

David Harbour - Stranger Things(Netflix)

John Lithgow - The Crown(Netflix)

Ron Cephas Jones - This Is Us(NBC)

Jeffrey Wright-Westworld(HBO)

Supporting Actress in a Drama

Uzo Aduba - Orange Is the New Black(Netflix)

Millie Bobby Brown - Stranger Things(Netflix)

Ann Dowd - The Handmaid's Tale(Hulu)

Samira Wiley - The Handmaid's Tale(Hulu)

Chrissy Metz - This Is Us(NBC)

Thandie Newton – Westworld(HBO)

Comedy Series

Atlanta(FX)

Black-ish(ABC)

Master of None(Netflix)

Modern Family(ABC)

Silicon Valley(HBO)

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt(Netflix)

Veep(HBO)

Lead Actor in a Comedy Series

Donald Glover – Atlanta(FX)

Zach Galifianakis – Baskets(FX)

Anthony Anderson - Black-ish(ABC)

Aziz Ansari - Master of None(Netflix)

William H. Macy – Shameless (Showtime)

Jeffrey Tambor – Transparent (Amazon)

Lead Actress in a Comedy

Pamela Adlon - Better Things(FX)

Tracee Ellis Ross - Black-ish(ABC)

Jane Fonda - Grace and Frankie(Netflix)

Lily Tomlin - Grace and Frankie(Netflix)

Allison Janney – Mom(CBS)

Ellie Kemper - Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt(Netflix)

Julia Louis-Dreyfus – Veep(HBO)

Supporting Actor in a Comedy

Louie Anderson – Baskets(FX)

Ty Burrell - Modern Family(ABC)

Alec Baldwin - Saturday Night Live(NBC)

Tituss Burgess - Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt(Netflix)

Tony Hale – Veep(HBO)

Matt Walsh – Veep(HBO)

Supporting Actress in a Comedy

Vanessa Bayer - Saturday Night Live(NBC)

Leslie Jones - Saturday Night Live(HBO)

Kate McKinnon - Saturday Night Live(NBC)

Kathryn Hahn – Transparent(Amazon)

Anna Chlumsky – Veep(HBO)

Judith Light – Transparent(Amazon)

Limited Series or TV Movie

Big Little Lies(HBO)

Fargo(FX)

Feud: Bette and Joan(FX)

The Night Of(HBO)

Genius(National Geographic)

Lead Actor in a Limited Series or TV Movie

Riz Ahmed - The Night Of(HBO)

Benedict Cumberbatch – Sherlock(PBS)

Robert De Niro - Wizard of Lies(HBO)

Ewan McGregor – Fargo(FX)

Geoffrey Rush – Genius(National Geographic)

John Turturro - The Night Of(HBO)

Lead Actress in a Limited Series or TV Movie

Felicity Huffman - American Crime(ABC)

Nicole Kidman - Big Little Lies(HBO)

Reese Witherspoon - Big Little Lies(HBO)

Carrie Coon – Fargo(FX)

Jessica Lange – Feud(FX)

Susan Sarandon – Feud(FX)

Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or TV Movie

Alexander Skarsgard - Big Little Lies(HBO)

David Thewlis – Fargo(FX)

Alfred Molina – Feud(FX)

Stanley Tucci – Feud(FX)

Bill Camp - The Night Of(HBO)

Michael Kenneth Williams - The Night Of(HBO)

Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or TV Movie

Regina King - American Crime(ABC)

Shailene Woodley - Big Little Lies(HBO)

Laura Dern - Big Little Lies(HBO)

Jackie Hoffman – Feud(FX)

Judy Davis – Feud(FX)

Michelle Pfeiffer - The Wizard of Lies(HBO)

Variety Talk

Full Frontal with Samantha Bee(TBS)

Jimmy Kimmel Live(ABC)

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver(HBO)

Real Time With Bill Maher(HBO)

The Late Late Show with James Corden(CBS)

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (CBS)

Reality Competition

RuPaul's Drag Race(VH1)

The Amazing Race(CBS)

Top Chef(Bravo)

The Voice(NBC)

American Ninja Warrior(NBC)

Project Runway(Lifetime)

TV Movie

Black Mirror: San Junipero(Netflix)

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks(HBO)

Dolly Parton's Christmas Of Many Colors: Circle Of Love (NBC)

Sherlock: The Lying Detective(PBS)

Wizard of Lies(HBO)

Variety Sketch Series

Billy On The Street(truTV)

Documentary Now!(IFC)

Drunk History(Comedy Central)

Portlandia(IFC)

Saturday Night Live(NBC)

Tracey Ullman’s Show(HBO)

Structured Reality Program

Antiques Roadshow(PBS)

Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives(Food Network)

Fixer Upper(HGTV)

Lip Sync Battle(Spike Tv)

Shark Tank(ABC)

Who Do You Think You Are?(TLC)

Host for a Reality/Reality-Competition Program

Alec Baldwin - Match Game(ABC)

Kamau Bell - United Shades Of America With W. Kamau Bell(CNN)

RuPaul Charles - RuPaul’s Drag Race(VH1)

Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn - Project Runway(Lifetime)

Gordon Ramsay - MasterChef Junior(Fox)

Martha Stewart & Snoop Dogg - Martha & Snoop’s Potluck Dinner Party(VH1)

ESPN’s 2015 Heisman Trophy Presentation took home the trophy for most social television show on Saturday, according to Nielsen.

The special, in which Alabama’s Derrick Henry won the coveted college football player of the year statuette, generated 235,000 tweets reaching a unique audience of 4.8 million Twitter users to top all shows, according to the Nielsen Daily Twitter TV ratings report.

NBC’s Saturday Night Live was second with 40,000 tweet reaching 1.2 million Twitter users, followed by ESPN’s 30 For 30 special, Starz’s Ash vs. Evil Dead and Fox News’ The Great Gutfeld Show.

The Ulitmate Fighting Championship’s UFC 194: Aldo vs. McGregor was the most tweeted live sports event, generating 603,000 tweets reaching nearly 5.4 million unique Twitter users, according to Nielsen.

BBC America’s Doctor Who generated 27,000 Tweets last night to lead all shows for the day, according to Nielsen.

The iconic sci-fi series bested the 21,000 tweets generated by NBC’s Saturday Night Live, although the live late night series reached 740,000 unique Twitter audiences to Doctor Who’s 410,000, according to Nielsen’s daily Twitter Tv Ratings report.

Starz’s horror series Ash vs. Evil Dead, Hallmark Channel’s holiday movie Just In Time For Christmas, and SundanceTV’s The Returned followed closely behind, according to Nielsen.

CBS’ Florida vs. Alabama SEC Championship college football telecast drew 295,000 tweets reaching 5 million unique Twitter audiences to top all live sports telecasts on Saturday, said Nielsen.

CBS’ Democratic Presidential Debate dominated social media chatter surrounding television shows Saturday night while the UFC 193 pay-per-view event was the most tweeted sports event of the day, according to Nielsen.

The Democratic Debate drew 815,000 tweets reaching an unduplicated audience of 4.9 million viewers to top all entertainment-based shows Saturday night, according to Nielsen Twitter TV Ratings Daily report. NBC’s Saturday Night Live drew 25,000 tweets to finished second, followed by cable shows Doctor Who (BBC America) and Ash vs. Evil Dead (Starz) and CBS’ 48 Hours.

RELATED:Interest in the presidential race is driving ratings for the big news networks -- and the niche nets, as well; click here (subscription required).

The UFC 193 PPV event, which featured Holly Holm’s upset knockout over UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey, pinned down 927,000 tweets reaching more than 6 million unique Twitter users to top three ABC and one CBS college football telecasts for the most social media sports event of the day, according to Nielsen.