‘SNL’ Announces Paul Rudd, DJ Khaled as Guests for May 18 Season Finale

Saturday Night Live has announced Avengers star, Paul Rudd as its guest host for the season finale, alongside musical guest DJ Khaled.

SNL is closing out Season 44 with a bang, with the final round of hosts and musical guests announced on Wednesday. The variety show will be back on May 4 with host Adam Sandler and musical guest Shawn Mendes. After that the May 11 episode will be hosted by Emma Thompson with musical guests the Jonas Brothers, and finally, Rudd and Khaled will be the grand finale.

“And now… for the final time this season… Mark. Those. Calendars,” came the tweet from SNL, which confirmed this lineup. The post got thousands of likes and retweets within the hour, with many fans saying they could hardly wait for the upcoming appearances.

Obviously, the timing is great for Rudd, who will appear in his first official Avengers film as Ant Man next week when Avengers: Endgame hits theaters. Rudd’s character, Scott Lang has crossed over with other superheroes before in Captain America: Civil War, which featured a stacked cast like a real team-up movie. However, this will be his true induction into the group.

Rudd’s Avenger status will most certainly play into his appearance on SNL as an unavoidable juggernaut of pop culture. Meanwhile, DJ Khaled is fresh off of his recent gig hosting the Kids Choice Awards, so we know he is comfortable on live TV.

“They said I would never do SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE,” Khaled wrote on Twitter when the announcement came out. “So I’m doing SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE!! Not only am I doing Saturday Night Live… I’m doing the season finale MAY 18!! #FANLUV IM UP TO SOMETHING! I got some BIG surprises!”

Khaled is promoting the release of Father of Asahd, his new album due out on May 17. The record is based on Khaled’s recent experiences as a father since the birth of his son, Asahd, and he has promised fans it will be the best music he has ever released. According to a report by Billboard, the album includes collaborations with such artists as J Balvin, Cardi B, Meek Mill, Post Malone, Travis Scott, Bryson Tiller and 2 Chainz.

In the meantime, SNL is off following a string of massive shows in recent weeks. Last weekend, it was hosted by Emma Stone with musical guest BTS, who undoubtedly stole the show. Before that, SNL capitalized on the final season of Game of Thrones with host Kit Harington.

Saturday Night Live returns on May 4 at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBC.

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