- Saturday Night Live celebrated its 50th anniversary yesterday
- Stars old and new gathered to help celebrate the show’s legacy
- However, one of the show’s original players was mysteriously absent
Why was Dan Aykroyd nowhere to be seen during Saturday Night Live’s epic, three hour SNL 50 celebration special?
Despite being one of the original not ready for prime time players, the star remained mysteriously absent throughout the show’s milestone birthday show.
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Aykroyd was a key player from Saturday Night Live’s original cast. Led by Chevy Chase, Aykroyd and his comedy colleagues John Belushi, Garrett Morris, Laraine Newman, Jane Curtin and Gilda Radner went on to revolutionise mainstream comedy.
After Chase left at the end of the show’s first season, Bill Murray joined the cast, with Saturday Night Live continuing to make and break pop-culture trends for the preceding five decades.
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Throughout the SNL 50 anniversary special, each of season one’s surviving castmembers was present in some capacity. Even Radner appeared briefly during the goodnights as Newman held up a headshot photo of the Baba Wawa star.
So where was Aykroyd?
Dan Aykroyd SNL 50 – where was he?
Having stared in megahits like Ghostbusters and The Blues Brothers, fans were quick to notice Aykroyd’s absence.
“I’m bummed that Aykroyd isn’t at the anniversary special,” one user said on X.
I’m bummed that Aykroyd isn’t at the anniversary special. #SNL50 pic.twitter.com/pVvyzENntM
— Dana Grace (@Dana283) February 17, 2025
“so no Dana Carvey, Bill Hader, or Dan Aykroyd at #SNL50” posted another.
So no Dana Carvey, Bill Hader, or Dan Aykroyd at #SNL50 pic.twitter.com/b6jWVspmmm
— Ericka ♡ (@NeonTravesty) February 17, 2025
According to Aykroyd’s absence was confirmed in early February, with his agent saying simply that the SNL icon “won’t be there.”
No further information was provided, leaving us pondering whether Aykroyd’s absence was due to personal or professional reasons. Either way, we hope both are resolved soon.
Aykroyd praises SNL on social media
To make things even more confusing, Aykroyd had been quite vocal about his excitement for the SNL 50 show.
In a string of social media posts issued on to the X platform, the actor called Saturday Night Live “an essential reflection of the times we live in.”
Cracking a Head with pride at having been a co-founder of SNL along with everyone we were together with in those four years, five decades ago. This telecast is as historical as the next moon landing. Comedy stars of our age all gathered under the aegis of America’s greatest…
— Dan Aykroyd (@dan_aykroyd) February 14, 2025
He added that the telecast of the 50th anniversary special would be “as historical as the next moon landing.”
Despite this high praise, Aykroyd was sadly missed during the show’s big birthday moment.
