Grace Reiter officially joined the Season 52 cast of Saturday Night Live on Sept 16. She is the first cast member born in the 21st century, at 25 years old. Since then, she has received much excitement and celebration from internet fans. Many know her from her and her friends’ viral comedy skits on social media under American High.
Reiter’s success didn’t happen overnight, however; she’s been pursuing the comedy industry from every angle, taking every opportunity to forge her own path for years.
Reiter was born on May 18, 2001, in Madison, Wisconsin. Growing up, she always wanted to star on Disney Channel. She began posting comedy skits on TikTok in 2019. She created point-of-view videos teasing Harry Styles fan fiction on Wattpad. Her breakthrough came when one video exploded, earning her a million likes and followers. Four years later, she had around 2 million followers on the platform.
In 2022, she joined a cast of actors to create daily video sketches for the very popular sketch comedy company American High, with their channels American High Shorts and College Life, which many recognize her from. Surprisingly, none of the cast are actual students there; it’s a production company that bought a school to film made-up videos.
In an interview on “Passion Pod,” she revealed that stand-up comedy felt exposing. She found that playing a persona felt like a shield that protected her from judgment. This allowed her to take creative risks.
She made her film debut in 2023, playing a protester in “First Time Female Director,” a comedy film directed by Chelsea Peretti. In 2024, she launched her podcast “That’s Enough with Grace Reiter.” In 2025, she secured a recurring role in “The Chair Company,” an HBO series.
In Nov. 2025, she self-directed and starred in a 45-minute parody of “The Hunger Games” titled “The Hunger Games (but better).” She and her friends shot this in just three days. It was a great success, with over 15 million views on YouTube, and it propelled her TikTok account past 4 million followers. She subsequently earned a spot on Rolling Stone’s influential creators list.
Her success steadily climbed further. This past year, she played a role in “Ginger Twinsies” at the Orpheum Theatre, a parody of “The Parent Trap.” “Minimum Wage,” a 28-episode series on Netflix, was also adapted from American High. At last, she earned a well-deserved spot on SNL.
She is currently working on a comedy music album featuring her original character, Tate McRib, a parody of Tate McRae. Her story is inspirational: she never waited for Hollywood and traditional theater directors to cast her. Her resilience shines through as she takes charge and casts herself.