Cecily Strong Bids Goodbye To 'Saturday Night Live,' Here Are 5 Of Her Best Performances On The Show

Actress and comedienne, Cecily Strong, has ended her over-a-decade-long run as a part of NBC's "Saturday Night Live" cast. She joined the sketch comedy show in 2012 as a featured player, and a year later, Strong co-anchored "Weekend Update" with Seth Mayers and then Colin Jost.

Strong showed herself to be one of the most reliably funny performers on "SNL" due to her portrayal of several original characters and accurate celebrity impressions.

The comedian had her last show on "SNL" this past Saturday, and it featured a number of emotional moments with the cast. "Elvis" actor Austin Butler hosted the episode and gave Strong her very own performance to send her off.

Read on to learn more.

Strong was introduced to the 'SNL' audience in 2012 as a featured player, and a year later, she was moved to a part of the show's cast. Here are some of her most rib-cracking performances on the sketch show.

Cecily Strong put on a show as Melania Trump in 'Melanianade';

She always delivered as the former first lady;

The one with RuPaul;

This christmas sketch with Matt Damon left us cackling;

The One With Salt Bae;

Strong earned two consecutive Emmy awards in 2020 and 2021 for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, acknowledging her work in the comedy sketch show.

Strong joined the cast of "SNL" one more time on December 17 for her final appearance as a cast member on the show. The comedian previously announced her decision to leave the NBC comedy show during her performance of Cathy Anne in a "Weekend Update" segment.

During the segment, she said, "I'm a little emo tonight because, truth is, I'm here to say goodbye." When Michael Che, her co-anchor, asked where she was going, Strong, as Cathy quipped, "Turns out, prison!"

The comedian went on to joke about knowing people on the inside, and a picture of her previous "SNL" co-stars, Kate McKinnon and Aidy Bryant, was displayed. The duo left the series in May, and in the image, they were shown wearing orange prison uniforms.

She continued, "It's just my time now. But I had a lot of fun here, and I feel really lucky that I got to have so many of the best moments of my life in this place with these people that I love so much."

Strong bid the cast and audience a second more emotional goodbye in the night's final sketch. The performance was set in a Radio Shack and featured her co-star, Kenan Thompson, as Frank Lasagna, the store boss. He bid farewell to Strong, saying that she had given "eight incredible years" to the show.

Strong responded, "Well, I've been here eleven." "I know. And eight of them were incredible. Honestly, I don't think that Radio Shack could have survived this long without Cecily," Thompson said per Yahoo.

The comedian continued, "Every time she came to work, she had a new character, or a new accent, or a new impression that would just blow you away. She had a power and a joy to her performance that made you remember why you loved working at Radio Shack in the first place. I know I'm not supposed to say this as your boss, but: I love you, Cecily."

Strong replied, "I love you too, Mr. Frank Lasagna."

The night was not over yet, and Butler, the episode host, was brought on as "Casual Elvis" to serenade Strong. The actor belted out the King of Rock and Roll's 1957 hit track, "Blue Christmas." Butler sang, "We'll have a blue Christmas without you / We'll be so blue just thinking about you."

Strong joined the number, chiming, "And when those blue snowflakes start falling / That's when those blue memories start callin'…" The rest of the "SNL" cast, including Thompson, joined in the emotional farewell while snowflakes fell on the set. They all exchanged hugs toward the end of the musical performance.

Prior to December 17, Strong has not been a regular face on the 48th season of "SNL." The comedian had herself occupied with her role in the Off-Broadway revival of "The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe."