Saturday Night Live season 28
| Saturday Night Live | |
|---|---|
| Season 28 | |
 | |
| No. of episodes | 20 |
| Release | |
| Original network | NBC |
| Original release | October 5, 2002 – May 17, 2003 |
| Season chronology | |
The twenty-eighth season of Saturday Night Live, an American sketch comedy series, originally aired in the United States on NBC between October 5, 2002, and May 17, 2003.
Cast
Before the start of the season, Will Ferrell and Ana Gasteyer left the show. Gasteyer was on maternity leave, and decided not to return, while Ferrell left to star in feature films. Hired to fill their absences were comedian/punk musician Fred Armisen and TV writer Will Forte (of The Groundlings). Both joined the show as featured players. Armisen is the show's second Latino male cast member (Horatio Sanz being first), and also the second male cast member to have some Asian heritage (Rob Schneider being first). Armisen is so far the only cast member to have Korean heritage (though, at the time, Armisen mistakenly believed his heritage to have been Japanese).
This would be the final season for Dean Edwards, Chris Kattan and Tracy Morgan. The latter two would make cameo appearances in many episodes of the following season.
Cast roster
|
Repertory players |
Featured players
|
bold denotes Weekend Update anchor
Writers
Episodes
| No. overall | No. in season | Host | Musical guest(s) | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 526 | 1 | Matt Damon | Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band | October 5, 2002 |
| 527 | 2 | Sarah Michelle Gellar | Faith Hill | October 12, 2002 |
| 528 | 3 | John McCain | The White Stripes | October 19, 2002 |
| 529 | 4 | Eric McCormack | Jay-Z | November 2, 2002 |
| 530 | 5 | Nia Vardalos | Eve | November 9, 2002 |
| 531 | 6 | Brittany Murphy | Nelly | November 16, 2002 |
| 532 | 7 | Robert De Niro | Norah Jones | December 7, 2002 |
| 533 | 8 | Al Gore | Phish | December 14, 2002 |
| 534 | 9 | Jeff Gordon | Avril Lavigne | January 11, 2003 |
| 535 | 10 | Ray Liotta | The Donnas | January 18, 2003 |
| 536 | 11 | Matthew McConaughey | Dixie Chicks | February 8, 2003 |
| 537 | 12 | Jennifer Garner | Beck | February 15, 2003 |
| 538 | 13 | Christopher Walken | Foo Fighters | February 22, 2003 |
| 539 | 14 | Queen Latifah | Ms. Dynamite | March 8, 2003 |
| 540 | 15 | Salma Hayek | Christina Aguilera | March 15, 2003 |
| 541 | 16 | Bernie Mac | Good Charlotte | April 5, 2003 |
| 542 | 17 | Ray Romano | Zwan | April 12, 2003 |
| 543 | 18 | Ashton Kutcher | 50 Cent | May 3, 2003 |
| 544 | 19 | Adrien Brody | Sean Paul Wayne Wonder | May 10, 2003 |
| 545 | 20 | Dan Aykroyd | Beyoncé | May 17, 2003 |
Specials
| Title | Original air date |
|---|---|
| "The Best of Will Ferrell" | September 28, 2002 |
| "SNL Christmas 2002" | December 17, 2002 |
| Weekend Update Halftime Special | January 26, 2003 |