Bowen Yang is leaving Saturday Night Live after seven seasons, marking the end of a groundbreaking run on the iconic sketch comedy show. The Emmy-nominated comedian made history as SNL’s first Chinese-American cast member and one of the show’s first openly gay stars.

Yang’s final episode will air Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025, with his close friend and Wicked co-star Ariana Grande hosting and Cher performing as the musical guest.

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Bowen Yang on His SNL Departure

Yang had hinted at leaving the show earlier this year, but in a September 2025 interview, he said he still had more to give:

“I’ve always gone by the instinct of, do I have more to do? And I feel like I do,” he said. Yang revealed that SNL creator Lorne Michaels reassured him, telling him: “You have more to do. I need you.”

Yang has also been candid about the fact that he never intended to stay at SNL indefinitely:

“That inevitably requires me to sort of hang it up at some point — but I don’t know what the vision is yet,” he explained in an April 2025 interview, describing SNL as “this growing, living thing where new people come in and you do have to sort of make way for them and to grow and to keep elevating themselves.”

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Highlights from Bowen Yang’s SNL Career

During his time on the show, Yang became known for viral sketches and memorable characters. Notable moments include:

• A powerful “Weekend Update” segment addressing anti-Asian hate crimes, highlighting a 75-year-old Asian American woman defending herself in San Francisco.
• Playing “The Iceberg That Sank the Titanic” on Weekend Update, combining satire and humor to promote his fictional music career.

Yang has credited past SNL performers as inspiration, citing Will Ferrell, Andy Samberg, and Margaret Cho for paving the way for queer and Asian representation in comedy.

“The female cast of SNL in the late ’90s and early ’00s. Will Ferrell and Andy Samberg,” he said. “Someone who was queer, Asian and doing something that you did not immediately associate with an Asian person. There’s a dearth of representation when it comes to queer people or Asian people, but I have to give credit to the people who have been out here doing it, and that’s definitely Margaret.”

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What’s Next for SNL

Yang’s exit comes alongside other recent cast departures ahead of season 51, including Heidi Gardner, Michael Longfellow, Emil Wakim, Devon Walker, Josh Higgins, and Ego Nwodim. He has described SNL as a “boot camp,” preparing cast members for the next stage of their careers while passing the torch to new talent.