Franco, Bon Jovi, Lautner & More Featured on Upcoming Episodes of SNL

"Saturday Night Live" will ring in the holiday season with original shows on three consecutive weekends, beginning December 5 with Blake Lively and Rihanna both taking the stage in studio 8H for the first time.

Blake Lively currently stars in the feature film "The Private Lives of Pippa Lee" and the hit show, "Gossip Girl," and just finished filming "The Town," directed by Ben Affleck with a September 2010 release date. Blake achieved early success in 2005 with her role in the bestselling novel adapted to feature films, "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants," and "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2."

Multi-platinum superstar Rihanna, who received countless awards and nominations, recently released her highly anticipated and critically acclaimed fourth studio album, 'Rated R,' with her singles, "Russian Roulette" and "Hard" featuring Jeezy already climbing the charts. One of her most notable singles, 'Umbrella,' off her third studio album, "Good Girl Gone Bad," dominated the U.S. pop, urban, and crossover Billboard charts in 2007.

"Twilight" and "New Moon" star Taylor Lautner will make his hosting debut December 12, with musical guest the Grammy Award-winning band Bon Jovi. "New Moon" made box office history with the biggest single opening day. Lautner can be seen next in the romantic comedy "Valentines Day," due out February 2010.

Bon Jovi is returning for their fifth appearance on SNL and will be performing songs from their latest #1 album, The Circle. Bon Jovi has set the standard for more than two decades as one of the most successful rock bands in the world. Globally, the Grammy Award-winning band has sold more than 120 million albums and performed more than 2,600 concerts in over 50 countries for more than 34 million fans.

On December 19, James Franco makes his second appearance as host of SNL, with musical guest British rock trio Muse. Franco recently completed production on Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman's "Howl" and is next set to star alongside Danny McBride and Natalie Portman in David Gordon Green's "Your Highness." Franco's metamorphosis into the title role of the TNT biopic "James Dean" earned him career-making reviews, as well as a Golden Globe for "Best Actor in a Motion Picture made for Television." Franco credits includes "Milk," "Pineapple Express," in which he was nominated for a Golden Globe, the "SpiderMan" trilogy and "In The Valley of Elah."

Muse released their fifth album, "The Resistance," on September 15th earning them their highest ever debut on the Billboard Top 200 album chart by bowing at No. 3. The debut single from the album, "Uprising," is currently Number One on the Alternative Radio chart and has been for the last 12 weeks. The band has headlined both Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits Music Festivals and sold out New York City's legendary Madison Square Garden and The Forum in Los Angeles. The band will tour the United States beginning February 2010.

"Saturday Night Live" is from SNL Studios in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer is Lorne Michaels. Steve Higgins and Marci Klein are producers. Ken Aymong is supervising producer. Seth Meyers is head writer. Don Roy King directs.

Photo Credit: Sarah DeBoer/Retna Ltd.

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