Entertainment

Many of the stars who either starred in or attended “SNL 50” have New England ties.

By Conor Roche

February 17, 2025 | 10:16 AM

2 minutes to read

“SNL 50” showcased many of the top stars and hosts in “Saturday Night Live” history in Sunday’s special, giving fans of the show plenty to celebrate over three hours.

A handful of the stars who either starred in or attended “SNL 50” have New England ties. In fact, Casey Affleck’s memorable “Dunkin’” sketch was featured in a best of montage that focused on the best commercial sketches in the show’s history. On the flipside, Ben Affleck was featured in a montage that showcased jokes and sketches that haven’t aged well over the show’s 50 years.

Neither Affleck brother appeared on the show or was photographed attending the event. But here are the celebrities with New England ties who either starred or attended “SNL 50.”

Amy Poehler

Poehler was one of the top stars of Sunday’s show. She and Tina Fey took questions from the celebrity audience, providing humorous answers throughout the sketch.

Later, Poehler and Maya Rudolph revived their “Bronx Beat” sketch, mixing it with Mike Myers’s “Coffee Talk” sketch.

Rachel Dratch

Dratch revived her most memorable character from her seven-year stint on the show, returning Sunday as Debbie Downer. In the 2025 edition of the sketch, she harped over the recent bird flu epidemic and called out Jimmy Fallon for breaking character in the most famous edition of the sketch.

Ayo Edebiri

Edebiri was among those who appeared in Sunday’s “Debbie Downer” sketch. The Dorchester native hosted the show in February 2024.

Seth Meyers

Meyers appeared twice in “SNL 50.” His first appearance came during Poehler and Fey’s Q&A session, quipping at one point if the “whole question and answer thing is just a way to give some airtime to celebrities who aren’t in other parts of the show.”

Later, Meyers appeared in “Weekend Update,” returning to the segment he hosted for nine seasons.

Adam Sandler

Sandler had one of the more heartfelt moments of Sunday’s show. He paid tribute to the 50 years of the show by singing an original song and playing his guitar.

Conan O’Brien

Over three decades after his three years working as a writer on “Saturday Night Live,” O’Brien returned to 30 Rock for Sunday’s special. He didn’t appear in any of the sketches, though. But at least he wasn’t included in Steve Martin’s joke that showed some of the writers over the history of the show standing outside in the rain during the opening monologue.

O’Brien is set to host the 97th Oscars in March.

Caroline Kennedy

Kennedy was among the many celebrities who attended Sunday’s event who didn’t appear in the show.

Bill Burr

Burr also didn’t appear in Sunday’s show, but was presumably invited as a former host. He’s hosted “SNL” twice, with his most recent appearance coming in the episode after the presidential election in November.

Hilaria Baldwin

Hilaria Baldwin attended Sunday’s “SNL 50” alongside her husband, Alec Baldwin. Alec Baldwin, who’s hosted the show a record 17 times, introduced the commercial montage.