Eddie Murphy was a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1980 to 1984, appearing in 65 episodes, according to ABC News. He returned to host in December 2019, about 35 years after his cast run ended. His characters and impressions became central to his SNL legacy, and former executive producer Dick Ebersol later said Murphy helped save the show—but that is Ebersol’s assessment of a difficult period, not proof that one performer alone turned the program around.
When Eddie Murphy was on SNL
Murphy joined Saturday Night Live during the 1980–81 season, after creator-producer Lorne Michaels and much of the original cast had left. A retrospective season account describes Murphy’s rise from extra to featured performer and then full cast member during that season. The show’s 1983–84 season account identifies Murphy and Joe Piscopo as performers making their final sketches that year. SNL Transcripts Tonight’s season accounts are retrospective summaries, not an official NBC episode database.
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ABC News reports that Murphy appeared in 65 episodes between 1980 and 1984. He hosted the show on December 15, 1984, after his cast tenure, and did not return to host again until December 2019. ABC described the gap as almost 35 years to the day, so the interval is approximate rather than an exact anniversary.
What made his SNL performances stand out
Murphy’s work combined impressions with recurring, sharply drawn comic characters. A Washington Post retrospective highlights his impressions of James Brown and Stevie Wonder, along with Buckwheat, Gumby, and Mr. Robinson. That is a representative selection, not a complete inventory of his sketches.
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Characters that became signatures
- Buckwheat: A character that became one of Murphy’s best-known recurring roles on the show.
- Gumby: Murphy’s take on the fictional clay character, among the performances repeatedly associated with his SNL run.
- Mr. Robinson: A satirical neighborhood figure. NBC’s official archive preserves an October 17, 1981 clip, “Mister Robinson’s Neighborhood: Puppet Show.” Watch the NBC clip.
The NBC page also identifies Peacock as a streaming option for SNL. Availability of individual episodes or sketches can vary; the archived clip is a specific example, not a guarantee that every Murphy-era episode is available in every region.
Did Eddie Murphy save SNL?
The claim has a clear source: former executive producer Dick Ebersol. In a Washington Post retrospective, Ebersol called Murphy “the single most important performer in the history of the show” and said, “He literally saved the show.” That is Ebersol’s retrospective judgment, not an uncontested measure of Murphy’s contribution.
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The context matters. By spring 1981, NBC was considering canceling the program, according to the Post’s account. The same retrospective describes Murphy as a standout and reports that Ebersol worked to ensure he appeared regularly. It does not establish a specific ratings figure or prove that Murphy alone caused the show to survive. Murphy’s rise took place amid a broader production transition after Michaels and much of the original cast departed, so the fairest account gives him substantial credit without reducing the show’s recovery to one person.
Former SNL writer David Sheffield, also quoted in the retrospective, remembered Murphy as strikingly at ease in the studio: “I remember watching Eddie and he was completely relaxed. He looked like if the set fell down on top of him, he would not give a damn.”
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His return and later connection to the show
Murphy returned as host on December 21, 2019. During his monologue, he said, “It’s great to be back here finally hosting ‘Saturday Night Live,’” and joked, “But if you’re black this is the first episode since I left here back in 1984.” ABC News transcribed both lines. The appearance was a hosting return, distinct from his 1980–84 cast tenure.
His association with the program continued beyond that return. Murphy was included in SNL’s 50th-anniversary coverage in February 2025, a reminder that his short cast run remains part of the show’s institutional history.
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