'SNL' News & Cast Update: Taran Killam Not Returning For Season 42, Says His Early Departure Was A Surprise

Taran Killam and Jay Pharoah will no longer be seen on "Saturday Night Live" Season 42. According to Killam, the puzzling and surprising decision came as a shock to him to as the show did not give him any reason as to why he was being cut from participating in "SNL."

Both Killam and Pharoah have been on "SNL" for six seasons. E! News reported that during Killam's interview recently, he said that his early departure from "SNL" surprised him as much as the fans. He also had another year left on his contract so he is also questioning the decision.

Killam shared, "I don't know the other side of it. You sign for seven years, so I had one more year. I had sort of had it in my head I would make this upcoming year my last year, but then heard they weren't going to pick up my contract. I was never given a reason why, really."

He did say, however, that he thinks he know what the reason is regarding his contract for "SNL" no longer getting picked up this upcoming season. He shared that it might have something to do with the film he is directing entitled "Why We're Killing Gunther." He pointed out that he will have two months of post-production and it might affect the production schedule of "SNL."

Vanity Fair also reported that it is unclear why Killam and Pharoah were not picked to join "SNL" Season 42 since they appear on most of the sketches per episode. Pharoah does great impressions for President Barack Obama and Jay Z while Killam is best known for impersonating Ted Cruz, Dane Cook, Donald Trump, and Brad Pitt.

Despite not knowing what the exact reason is as to why he will no longer be joining "Saturday Night Live" Season 42, Killam said that he is grateful for the six years on the show and that he felt like he got his dream job.

"SNL" Season 42 is yet to announce who will be filling the spots of Killam and Pharoah.