SNL Fires Watkins, Wilson

One word: Wow. I found this out yesterday, and apologize for the delay. I was just too busy trying to pick my jaw up off the ground.
Yes its true: After the recent hires of Jenny Slate and Nasim Pedrad, Lorne Michaels has fired castmembers Michaela Watkins and Casey Wilson. The news about Casey didn't surprise me. Once the announcement came a few days ago about the 2 new females being hired, I knew there was no way Casey would be kept. However, I figured the cast would be strong with the 5 females they had. Lorne Michaels didn't agree--he also fired highly regarded Michaela Watkins, which so far has not been a popular decision with the SNL faithful. Michaela hadn't even been on the cast for a full season, and she'd already won many viewers over with her "Bitch Pleeze" character and her impressions of Ariana Huffington and Hota Kotb. Many fans, myself included, thought she out-performed her co-hire Abby Elliott, who will return for SNL's 35th season. I know Lorne has his reasons for what he did, but as for now, I'm still scratching my head. Maybe he's really "sold" on his two new females.
In my opinion, this move puts a huge amount of pressure on the young Abby Elliott. Not only did Lorne keep her over Michaela, but now she's the unofficial "#2 female" on the cast. Something interesting to watch for: If the two new ladies look funnier than Abby, then the Michaela decision will look horrible. Because then, fans would argue (as many of them already have) that Michaela is funnier and more valuable to the cast then Abby. This being said, I wish everyone the best. I never root against a castmember, but I do take notice of who's doing better.

And good luck to the newbies! Let's not forget about them. It's always exciting to get some fresh faces on the show, and I'm excited to see what they have to offer. Good luck!