Washington [US], February 22 (ANI): Comedian Steve Martin has revealed that his friend and co-star Martin Short, as well as actress Maya Rudolph, contracted COVID-19 after attending the 'SNL50: The Anniversary Special'.

Martin took to Instagram to share the news, joking that the 'SNL 50th Covid curse is real.'

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Martin shared a photo of Short and Rudolph embracing and sharing a friendly kiss, captioning it, 'Maya had Covid. Marty has Covid. I wonder why? The SNL 50th Covid curse is real.'

Martin delivered the opening monologue of the 50th anniversary special, while Rudolph also appeared and performed sketches.

Short's illness caused Martin to announce that they would have to reschedule their upcoming shows in Durham, North Carolina, and Knoxville, Tennessee.

'Unfortunately, we have to reschedule this weekend's sold-out Durham and Knoxville dates to 10/17 Knoxville and 10/18 Durham. So sorry for the inconvenience. I think we'll be funnier then, anyway,' Martin captioned the post.

The news comes after Colin Jost joked about the risk of attendees getting sick during the 'Weekend Update' segment of the 'SNL50' special, as per The Hollywood Reporter.

Jost quipped, 'Health experts are facing increased pressure this winter in the face of outbreaks of COVID, the flu, RSV, and nanovirus, which they're calling a quad-demic. So we did the smart thing and packed every beloved entertainer over 60 into one tiny space.'

The 'SNL50: The Anniversary Special' was a star-studded event that brought together a myriad of SNL alums and guest stars to celebrate the milestone anniversary of the variety sketch series.

As per The Hollywood Reporter, the special drew 14.8 million viewers on NBC and Peacock. (ANI)