Paul Mescal enters the colosseum called Studio 8H. The “Gladiator II” star was revealed as the next host of “Saturday Night Live” in an interstitial that aired during the Nov. 16 episode with Charli XCX as a guest. Shaboozey was announced as musical guest.

Mescal and Shaboozey will appear on the Dec. 7 episode of “SNL,” the show’s first episode after a three-week hiatus for Thanksgiving.

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The “SNL” episode comes two weeks after Mescal’s “Gladiator II” hits theaters in North America. In Ridley Scott’s sequel to the 2000 Best Picture winner, Mescal stars as Hanno, the former heir to the Roman Empire who is now forced to return to his home and fight as a gladiator. The film also stars Pedro Pascal, Connie Nielsen, Fred Hechinger, Joseph Quinn and Denzel Washington.

Season 50 of Saturday Night Live kicked off with host Jean Smart and musical guest Jelly Roll. Both had big nights at the Emmys two weeks earlier: Smart won Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for Season 3 of “Hacks” and Jelly Roll performed during the “In Memoriam” segment.

The program concluded with Nate Bargatze and Coldplay on October 5, Ariana Grande and Stevie Nicks on October 12, Michael Keaton and Billie Eilish on October 19, and John Mulaney and Chappell Roan on November 2.

Comedian Bill Burr hosted the post-election episode on November 9 with musical guest Mk.gee, and Charli XCX was pulled double duty on November 16.

“Saturday Night Live” celebrates its 50th anniversary with a live primetime special on February 16. The series airs on NBC at 11:30 PM ET and streams on Peacock.

“SNL” is produced in association with Broadway Video. Lorne Michaels is creator and executive producer.

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