'Saturday Night Live' New Season: How NBC May Deal With Coronavirus Pandemic For 2020 Episodes

As "Saturday Night Live" readies for Season 46, the NBC comedy show is reportedly eying a possible return to its familiar Manhattan studios.

When speaking to Variety about the decision to potentially change the remote filming schedule that had become routine for the Lorne Michaels-created show, two people "familiar" with "SNL" stated that the network plans to begin working towards a sense of normalcy. This decision comes after the cast had been lending their talents to the various sketches from their homes amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

According to the publication, a strategy for the show's potential in-studio return could include a "controlled" environment, which would likely prevent a live audience from viewing the sketches in real-time. Even though "Saturday Night Live" has not yet started to implement these changes, another NBC show, "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon," has already started to amend its schedule as they begin taping new episodes.

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As for what this could look like for "SNL," Jimmy Fallon's show could serve as a model. If "SNL" does, in fact, take the lead of "The Tonight Show," they could feature socially-distanced musicians and crew members wearing masks.

Variety notes that there is an incentive for the NBC show to return, as the 2020 election cycle could provide a wealth of material. During the 2016 U.S. presidential election, impressions of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton by cast member Kate McKinnon and President (then candidate) Donald Trump by guest Alec Baldwin dominated the season. Additionally, Melissa McCarthy’s impersonation of former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer became another noteworthy appearance on the long-running series.

NBC has yet to comment on what the new season of "Saturday Night Live" will entail amid the ongoing COVID-19 health crisis, but that will likely not come as a surprise, as plans are typically not shared until the end of the summer. At this time, a premiere date for Season 46 of "SNL" also remains unknown.