Nasim Pedrad Joins John Mulaney's Comedy Pilot, Could Leave 'Saturday Night Live' if NBC Picks Up Show

As NBC looks to rebuilt itself for the future, Saturday Night Live could see some huge changes as a result. With a Hollywood Reporter story confirming Popculturology's theory that SNL head writer and Weekend Update anchor Seth Meyers is the probable replacement for Jimmy Fallon as host of Late Night, the show will already be dealing with the the upheaval that comes with finding a new head writer and a new host or two for the Update desk. On top of that comes the news that SNL could also lose star writer John Mulaney, with Mulaney taking SNL castmember Nasim Pedrad with him. From Deadline:

With time on pilot castings running out, Lorne Michaels called upon his Saturday Night Live co-star Nasim Pedrad for a lead role in the untitled John Mulaney multi-camera comedy pilot, which Michaels is executive producing. Written/exec produced by Mulaney and exec produced by Robert Carlock, the project is a young ensemble loosely based on Mulaney’s life. It centers on John (Mulaney), whose naïve, and often pointless, desire to “be a good person” challenges his friendship with his roommates, the sweet, intelligent, and lazy Jane (Pedrag) and Seymour (Griffin Newman).

Yes, Deadline thinks that Pedrad's last name is "Pedrag," but that's not the real issue here. Mulaney is one of SNL's key writers. You may not recognize his name, but you've most likely heard of Bill Hader's Stefon, a character who comes from Mulaney's own comedic mind. If Mulaney leaves SNL, that will probably be the end of Stefon.

You wouldn't guess it, but Pedrad is actually SNL's longest-tenured female castmember, a surprising fact considering how she seems to disappear for episodes at a time and usually finds herself underutilized by the show's writing staff. If Lorne Michaels is backing this show, I'm predicting that it'll go to series, meaning SNL can say goodbye to Mulaney and Pedrad.