Darrell Hammond, the Saturday Night Live alum, is set to replace Don Pardo as the comedy sketch show’s announcer.

Darrell Hammond To Announce 'SNL'

Hammond’s new role on Saturday Night Live, which comes following Don Pardo’s death in August, was announced by the comedian and Saturday Night Live showrunner Lorne Michaels on Thursday.

“I sat in for Don when he had laryngitis several times over the years,” Hammond told USA Today. “He was a lovely person. When he passed, they wanted me; it felt right for me to be the one to replace him. It’s been a very improbable life; I didn’t expect something like this, but it feels real good.”

When Hammond, 58, would step in to replace Pardo, who’d been announcing the show since its inception in 1975, he’d mimic the legendary announcer's stentorian voice. However, now that it will fully be his intro, Hammond is going to give it his own spin, which Michaels is encouraging.

"I just knew it wouldn't be anybody who sounded like Don or replicated him," said Michaels. "It can't be what it was, but it could sort of be in the same tradition. And it will be nice to have Darrell around. He understands the show and will probably be helpful in ways we haven't yet figured out."

Hammond was Saturday Night Live’s longest-tenured actor, working the sketch show stage for 14 years from 1995 to 2009. Hammond’s strength was always in impressions, among the most notable being Bill Clinton, Donald Trump and Sean Connery.

Pardo, whose shoes Hammond will attempt to fill on SNL, enjoyed a 70-year career at NBC before he passed away at age 96. Upon his passing, Michaels said, “[The show] didn’t come alive until you heard his voice.”