“It was an extraordinary show, but I was really nervous.”
Saturday Night Live may be a late night show, but that hasn’t stopped some young celebrities from staying up past their bedtime to host! Throughout SNL’s 49 seasons, there have been hundreds of stars who’ve taken on hosting duties — and a few of them were just kids at the time! In fact, the youngest person to ever host the show was only 7-years-old. While not all hosts were quite that young, quite a few stars have still been in their teens, proving that you’re never too young for some late night laughs.
Read on to find who hosted SNL as a kid…
1. Drew Barrymore, 7
When Drew Barrymore was just 7-years-old in 1982, she became the youngest person to ever host Saturday Night Live. Looking back on an episode of The Drew Barrymore Show, she says she remembers the experience “so well” and “wasn’t nervous” at all — attributing her on stage confidence to having worked in the entertainment industry from such a young age. Drew has gone on to host the show five more times: in 1999, 2001, 2004, 2007, and 2009.
2. Macaulay Culkin, 11
Macaulay Culkin wwas 11-years-old when he hosted SNL — and did something that no host had ever done in the history of the show. Macaulay says that his father demanded that he not use cue cards throughout the episode, even though the cast and guest stars always have help with their lines.
“My father was such a crazy person about it that I had to do the whole episode without cue cards. So also that meant that every other person in the cast couldn’t use cue cards, either, in any scene that I was in,” he shared on WTF with Marc Maron, noting that his dad “didn’t like when people glanced off and used cue cards.”
Macaulay says it wasn’t tough for him as if he forgot a line, he was able to “picture the page [he] was reading off of” and visualize the script in his head. Since then, it’s never been done again.
3. Fred Savage, 13
Fred Savage was 13 years old when he took the Saturday Night Live stage for the first time. Reflecting on his big night, Fred says he remembers it all “very clearly” and wasn’t nervous at all — but at the time, he really didn’t realize the magnitude of hosting the show.
“I didn’t really know, I didn’t really appreciate it. I mean, I did appreciate it but like my dad was really excited — I grew up watching it but I wasn’t nervous about it,” Fred shared on The Drew Barrymore Show.
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4. Jodie Foster, 14
In 1976, Jodie Foster hosted Saturday Night Live when she was just 14-years-old. At the time, she was the youngest person to ever take the stage as host. Looking back, Jodie says she was in awe of the incredible cast which included Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray and Chevy Chase — and was pretty nervous about the whole thing.
“It was an extraordinary show, but I was really nervous. I’d never done live anything,” Jodie told Interview Magazine. “About 10 minutes before I went on, I was drinking an Orange Julius, and the whole thing fell all over my shirt. I didn’t have time to change my clothes, and I was all sticky and broke out in hives because it didn’t go perfectly. So yeah, it wasn’t this wonderful experience for me. It was more like, ‘Oh wow, this is why I don’t like live theater.'”
5. Malcolm-Jamal Warner, 16
Malcolm-Jamal Warner was starring on The Cosby Show when he hosted SNL at age 16. He calls the experience a “highlight” of his life thanks to some shared moments with the musical guest, Run DMC.
“My favorite hip-hop group was Run DMC. I got an opportunity in 1986 to host Saturday Night Live. It was my honor to be able to say I went to Run DMC as a musical guest for my episode of Saturday Night Live,” he shared with HOT 97.
6. Taylor Lautner, 17
Taylor Lautner took the SNL stage as host in 2009 when he was 17-years-old in the midst of the Twilight craze. He appeared in some hilarious sketches but it was his monologue that was most memorable to fans. During the show’s opening, he chose to address the drama that went down between his former girlfriend Taylor Swift and Kanye West at the VMAs that year — and finally got his revenge on Kanye.
7. Mary Kate & Ashley Olsen, 17
In 2004, Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen teamed up to host Saturday Night Live together. At the time, the 17-year-old twins were promoting their film New York Minute, so it only made sense for them to host the iconic NYC show. While the sisters have stepped away from acting and haven’t returned to the SNL stage, they’ve passed the torch to their sister Elizabeth who made a cameo on the show in 2022.
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8. Lindsay Lohan, 17
That same year, Lindsay Lohan also took the SNL stage at age 17, just two months shy of her 18th birthday. During the episode, she portrayed Hermonie from Harry Potter, appeared on Weekend Update and joined Debbie Downer on a trip to Disney World. Lindsay went on to make another cameo on the show later that year and then hosted again in 2005, 2006 and 2012.
9. Britney Spears, 18
When Britney Spears was 18-years-old in 2000, she made her debut on the Saturday Night Live stage, taking on both hosting duties and performing as the musical guest. In the following years, Britney went on to make quite a few appearances on the show. In 2002, she returned as host and musical guest again and in 2003, she served as musical guest on one episode and made a cameo on another.
10. Miley Cyrus, 18
In 2011, Miley Cyrus made her Saturday Night Live debut at 18-years-old. Throughout the episode, Miley poked fun at herself, singing about her public scandals in her monologue and then pretended to host a Disney Channel acting school in a skit. She’s since returned to host two more times and has appeared as a musical guest six times. She even made a surprise cameo in 2021 when Billie Eilish was hosting.
11. Taylor Swift, 19
Taylor Swift was just a month away from turning 20 when she hosted Saturday Night Live in 2009. While she had already appeared as a musical guest earlier that year, it was the first time she was taking on hosting duties. Taylor even came prepared and wrote her own song to perform during her monologue. Since then, she’s appeared as the musical guest three times and made a few cameos.
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