It coincided with and contributed to the apogee of the "second golden age" of professional wrestling in the United States; bolstered by regular in-ring appearances by WWF stars such as Hulk Hogan, Saturday Night's Main Event drew large audiences for much of its run, while a spin-off simply titled The Main Event aired annually on a Friday night in February beginning in 1988.

That show was headlined by a battle royal involving Hulk Hogan and André the Giant, who were slated to face each other at WrestleMania III.

The first of these, on February 5, 1988, included a WrestleMania III rematch between Hogan and André and drew 33 million viewers and a 15.2 rating, which is still the highest-rated television show in American professional wrestling history.

NBC, who had just acquired the rights to broadcast NBA games nationwide, now started to lose interest in wrestling, and Saturday Night's Main Event was dropped.

For much of its history, Saturday Night's Main Event was hosted by McMahon and Jesse "The Body" Ventura with the occasional use of Bobby Heenan in 1986 and 1987.

Starting on the October 4, 1986 edition, each show featured a cold open of short wrestler promos set to a loop of the beginning of Lee Ritenour's "Traveling Music" from the American Flyers soundtrack.

Selected episodes were also shown in the UK on ITV in its weekly Saturday lunchtime World Of Sport slot, mainly thanks to the popularity of The British Bulldogs.

On September 17, 2024, WWE announced that it would be producing a second revival of Saturday Night's Main Event, with the first episode airing on December 14 from Nassau Coliseum—the site of the first edition of the series.

[7] The new revival features homages to the original run of Saturday Night's Main Event and WWE in the 1980s, including a lack of TitanTron, red, white, and blue ring ropes, referees in formal outfits, some branding elements using the WWE "throwback" logo[a], and the reinstatement of "Obsession" by Animotion as its theme music (albeit this time not as an instrumental).

Saturday Night's Main Event III took place on October 31, 1985, from Hershey, Pennsylvania, at the Hersheypark Arena, and aired on November 2, 1985.

[12] Saturday Night's Main Event IV took place on December 19, 1985, from Tampa, Florida, at the USF Sun Dome, and aired on January 4, 1986.

[38] Jake Roberts sneak-attacked Ricky Steamboat and took him out with his finisher, the DDT, on the arena's concrete floor prior to the match starting, helping set up a feud that continued through the summer and early fall of 1986.

When footage from the escape spot was deemed "inconclusive," the match was re-started and continued with Hogan gaining a decisive win over Orndorff.

Saturday Night's Main Event X took place on February 21, 1987, from Detroit, Michigan, at the Joe Louis Arena, and aired on March 14, 1987.

[46] Saturday Night's Main Event XI took place on April 28, 1987, from Notre Dame, Indiana, at the Edmund P. Joyce Center, and aired May 2, 1987.

Saturday Night's Main Event XII took place on September 23, 1987, from Hershey, Pennsylvania, at the Hersheypark Arena, and aired October 3, 1987.

Saturday Night's Main Event XIV took place on December 7, 1987, from Landover, Maryland, at the Capital Centre, and aired on January 2, 1988[26][52] on NBC.

This was the first Saturday Night's Main Event to not feature Hulk Hogan in any of the televised matches or interviews, as he had taken a leave of absence around this time to begin filming No Holds Barred.

Saturday Night's Main Event XIX took place on December 7, 1988, from Tampa, Florida, at the USF Sun Dome, and aired January 7, 1989[26][59] on NBC.

Saturday Night's Main Event XX took place on February 16, 1989, from Hershey, Pennsylvania, at the Hersheypark Arena, and aired March 11, 1989.

Saturday Night's Main Event XXIII took place September 21, 1989, from Cincinnati, Ohio, at the Riverfront Coliseum, and aired October 14, 1989.

[16] Saturday Night's Main Event XXIV took place October 31, 1989, from Topeka, Kansas, at the Sunflower State Expocentre, and aired November 25, 1989.

[72] Prematch stipulation of the Roddy Piper and The Mountie match for the WWF Intercontinental Championship, stated Bret Hart would face the winner at WrestleMania VIII.

Saturday Night's Main Event XXXI took place October 27, 1992, from Terre Haute, Indiana, at the Hulman Center, and aired November 14, 1992.

[77][78] James made an attempt to kiss Stratus at Saturday Night's Main Event XXXII, after the duo defeated Candice Michelle and Victoria.

Saturday Night's Main Event XXXIII took place July 15, 2006, from Dallas, Texas, at the American Airlines Center.

Saturday Night's Main Event XXXVI took place on July 28, 2008, from Washington, D.C., at the Verizon Center, and aired August 2, 2008.

The tournament to crown the inaugural Women's United States Champion began on November 15, 2024, and was held across episodes of SmackDown, concluding at the Saturday Night's Main Event special on December 14, 2024.

Saturday Night's Main Event XXXVIII took place on January 25, 2025, from San Antonio, Texas, at the Frost Bank Center, and was broadcast on NBC and Peacock in the United States and on YouTube in most other international markets.

[105] In 1992, the WWF released through Columbia House, Best of Saturday Night's Main Event (Collector's Edition) comprising five matches from 1988 to 1990.