Chris Redd Is the Latest to Depart Saturday Night Live : 'I Can't Thank You All Enough' - PEOPLE

Chris Redd is leaving Saturday Night Live, PEOPLE can confirm.

The comedian — who has been with the long-running NBC sketch show for five seasons, impersonating the likes of Kanye West and Mayor Eric Adams, among others — is the latest cast member to exit SNL before its 48th season.

"Being a part of SNL has been the experience of a lifetime. Five years ago, I walked into 30 Rock knowing that this was an amazing opportunity for growth," Redd, 37, said in a statement. "Now, with friends who have become family and memories I will cherish forever, I'm grateful to [creator] Lorne Michaels and to the entire SNL organization. From the bottom of my heart, I can't thank you all enough."

Saturday Night Live/Youtube

Following his departure, Redd will headline an HBO Max comedy special set to debut later this year, entitled Chris Redd: Why Am I Like This?. He is also slated to voice a lead role in a project from Broadway Video and Audible in addition to starring in Universal's feature film Cyber Monday, which is currently in development.

Redd first joined SNL as a featured player in September 2017 for season 43 before being promoted to repertory status in 2019 ahead of the show's 45th season. During his time on the series, Redd scored a Primetime Emmy for outstanding original music and lyrics in 2018 for the song "Come Back Barack."

His exit follows a mass exodus ahead of the show's 48th season. Longtime cast members Kate McKinnon, Aidy Bryant, Kyle Mooney and Pete Davidson left the show after the season 47 finale.

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PEOPLE confirmed earlier this month that three additional SNL comedians — cast members Melissa Villaseñor and Alex Moffat, as well as featured comedian Aristotle Athari — would not return for season 48.

Longtime sketch show producer and talent chief Lindsay Shookus also announced her exit from the series in August.

RELATED VIDEO: Emmys Host Kenan Thompson Says There Is "Always More" For Him to Do at SNL

Last week, SNL revealed that new cast members Marcello Hernandez, Molly Kearney, Michael Longfellow and Devon Walker will join the show ahead of its upcoming season.

At the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards, SNL creator Lorne Michaels said that season 48 "will be a transition year, and the change years are always difficult."

"There are new people, and things are changing, and a different generation comes into the show," Michaels, 77, told reporters backstage after SNL picked up its sixth consecutive outstanding variety series trophy.

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Chris Redd Is the Latest to Depart Saturday Night Live : 'I Can't Thank You All Enough' - PEOPLE
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