Jason Reitman's SNL movie Saturday Night will release exactly 49 years after the show's first episode

Live from New York… it’s a title and release date for the highly anticipated Saturday Night Live biopic. Jason Reitman’s SNL movie, which had tentatively been titled SNL 1975, will officially be called Saturday Night. The film will release in theaters on Oct. 11, 2024 — exactly 49 years after the show’s first-ever broadcast on Oct. 11, 1975. The film will also take place on the night of that first episode, which means audiences who watch the movie on its opening night will witness the project on the 49th anniversary of the day it depicts. SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE -- Season 1 -- Pictured: (back, l-r) Chevy Chase, John Belushi, Michael O'Donoghue, (middle, l-r) Gilda Radner, Jane Curtin, Laraine Newman, (front) Garrett Morris, circa 1975. (Photo by NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images). NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty To write the screenplay, Reitman and frequent collaborator Gil Kenan conducted extensive interviews with numerous cast and crew members who worked on SNL’s first season.  Saturday Night Live turns 50! Ranking the 30 best cast members since the sketch show premiered in 1975 Saturday Night’s ensemble primarily consists of exciting rising young stars and near-unknowns playing the cast and crew of the legendary comedy series. Among the most prominent up-and-comers:  The Fabelmans’ Gabriel LaBelle, who is playing SNL head honcho Lorne Michaels; Shiva Baby star Rachel Sennott, who will portray Michaels’ then-wife Rosie Shuster who wrote for the show; Licorice Pizza breakout Cooper Hoffman, who’s set to play NBC exec Dick Ebersol; No Hard Feelings actor Andrew Barth Feldman, who is portraying Michaels’ cousin Neil Levy who worked behind the scenes on the show; Bottoms actress Kaia Gerber, who is playing Chevy Chase’s then-girlfriend Jacqueline Carlin; and Stranger Things star Finn Wolfhard, who will play an NBC page. Want more movie news? Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free newsletter to get the latest trailers, celebrity interviews, film reviews, and more. Best and worst movies based on SNL sketches, plus some you may not know are tied to the show Meanwhile, Teen Wolf star Dylan O'Brien has been tapped to play Dan Aykroyd, New Girl’s Lamorne Morris was cast as Garrett Morris, and May December highlight Cory Michael Smith is playing Chevy Chase. The rest of the original SNL cast will be portrayed by lesser-known young performers, including Matt Wood as John Belushi, Ella Hunt as Gilda Radner, Kim Matula as Jane Curtin, and Emily Fairn as Laraine Newman. All the Saturday Night Live hosts who've doubled as musical guests Willem Dafoe and J.K. Simmons will play David Tebet and Milton Berle, respectively, while Jon Batiste will portray musical guest Billy Preston, and Muna musician Naomi McPherson is playing fellow musical guest Janis Ian. The biggest unknown factor that remains is the actor playing George Carlin, who served as the host of SNL’s inaugural episode.