Owen Wilson: Everything you need to know about SNL’s first host of the new season

Midnight in Paris actor is the first host of the 47th season

The new season of Saturday Night Live begins this weekend with Owen Wilson set to host the first episode of the 47th season.

It’s the first time the actor has ever hosted the late night comedy show, although he appeared in 2016 in the Weekend Update slot as his Zoolander character, Hansel, alongside his co-star for that film, Ben Stiller.

Last year, Wilson revealed why he’s never hosted the show before, saying: “I get really nervous with public speaking” on former SNL cast member Kevin Nealon’s YouTube series Hiking with Kevin.

He continued: “I’ve never done any of those commencement addresses or Saturday Night Live just because I get too nervous.”

Wilson’s breakthrough role came in 1996’s Bottle Rocket, which he wrote alongside filmmaker Wes Anderson, who was later to become one of Wilson’s most frequent artistic collaborators.

Wilson went on to appear in several of Anderson’s films including Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, The Life Aquatic, The Darjeeling Limited and The Grand Budapest Hotel. He’s also set to appear in Anderson’s upcoming film, The French Dispatch which is released this autumn.

Owen Wilson and Wes Anderson (Getty)

In 2011, Wilson earned a Golden Globe Award nomination for his turn as Gil Pender in Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris and he gained further acclaim for his role in Paul Thomas Anderson’s film, Inherent Vice.

He’s also well known for his “frat pack” comedies with films such as Zoolander, Starsky & Hutch, Wedding Crashers, You, Me and Dupree and The Internship, as well as for his role in family films like Marley and Me and Night at the Museum.

Most recently, he starred as Mobius M Mobius in the new acclaimed Disney Plus, Marvel series Loki.

Appearing on SNL alongside Wilson this week is country-pop star Kacey Musgraves as the episode’s musical guest.

Kim Kardashian West, Jason Sudeikis, and Rami Malek have also been announced as some of this season’s hosts. Halsey, Young Thug, and Brandi Carlile will also feature as musical guests.

All the details of how to watch this week’s episodes can be found here.