Devon Walker has confirmed that his exit from Saturday Night Live was a mutual decision.
On Aug. 25, the comedian announced his departure from NBC’s long-running late-night sketch series after three seasons. It was the first of a stream of exit announcements that rocked SNL ahead of its 51st season.
Days later, Walker, 34, shared new details in an interview with Rolling Stone, telling the outlet, “We decided together that it was time to go our separate ways.”
“I guess the best way I put it is like me and the show kind of looked at each other and we decided together that it was time to go our separate ways,” he added. “I think I felt ready to leave the show, and I think the show felt ready to leave me. I was just ready to do something else. We both felt like it was time.”
Walker explained that the time commitment required for the show caused him to miss out on other things in his life. “I felt ready to do a different version of my life,” he said. “I think that me and the show are both ready to turn the page.”
Devon Walker is Excited to Move Past ‘SNL’
During his three years on SNL, Walker was known for his impersonations of New York mayor Eric Adams, ABC host Michael Strahan, and more. But he clarified to fans that he was ready for a new job. Following his exit announcement, he posted to his Instagram stories to tell his followers, “Just to be clear, this is good news!! It was just time for me to do something different. Please do not be hitting me with all the ‘I’m so sorry’ we not on that AT ALL.”
Walker also told Rolling Stone that fans should not feel sorry for him, “I think when somebody leaves SNL, people’s impulse is to be like, ‘Oh, I’m really sorry.’ But to me, getting on SNL was such a blessing. I was never even training to do that thing,” he said. “I’m proud of a lot of the work that I did on there, but wait till people get to see the stuff that I really want to do.”
In addition to Walker, Emil Wakim, Michael Longfellow, and veteran Heidi Gardner are all out for SNL Season 51.
Remaining cast members include Kenan Thompson, Colin Jost, Michael Che, Mikey Day, Andrew Dismukes, Chloe Fineman, Marcello Hernandez, Ego Nwodim, James Austin Johnson, Bowen Yang, and Sarah Sherman, as well as featured players Ashley Padilla and Jane Wickline.
Saturday Night Live returns for Season 51 on Oct. 4.
