Bowen Yang, a fan-favorite “Saturday Night Live” cast member, is expected to leave the series after this week’s episode. Representatives for Yang and “Saturday Night Live” had no comment on the move Friday. There has been recent speculation about whether the current season of the show would end. He has appeared on the show since season 45 after a year of working on the writing staff.
Yang took on a variety of roles on the NBC comedy series, including playing Vice President JD Vance, Fran Lebowitz, and pygmy hippo Moo Deng. Yang received her fifth Emmy nomination for her work on the historic 50th season of “SNL.”
Yang is expected to appear on Saturday's episode, hosted by her “Wicked” co-star and friend Ariana Grande, with musical guest Cher.
Outside of “SNL,” Yang has recently appeared in several other projects. He co-hosts the popular podcast “Las Culturistas,” with fellow comedian Matt Rogers, and his seminal Premios Culturales Las Culturistas was televised for the first time this year, airing on Bravo and streaming on Peacock. Yang also appeared in the film “Wicked” and its recent sequel, “Wicked: For Good,” and has starred in several other films, including “The Wedding Banquet,” “Fire Island” and “Dicks the Musical.”
In early December, Yang confirmed that he and Rogers would co-write and star in an untitled comedy for Searchlight Pictures. The film will reportedly follow two Americans who fly across the world to try to break into Berlin's exclusive Berghain nightclub.
Yang isn't the first “Saturday Night Live” cast member to leave the show midseason: She joins the company of past “SNL” greats like Cecily Strong, Molly Shannon, Amy Poehler and a handful of others who left the show outside of the traditional departure period while the show is on summer hiatus.
Before the start of season 51, NBC and executive producer Lorne Michaels made some major changes to the cast, adding five notable players after a series of departures. Ego Nwodim, Heidi Gardner, Michael Longfellow, Devon Walker and Emil Wakim left the series before the season premiered in October.
Tommy Brennan, Jeremy Culhane, Ben Marshall, Kam Patterson and Veronika Slowikowska joined the cast for the current season. Marshall was previously part of the “SNL” writing staff and is known for his on-camera appearances as part of the comedy trio Please Don't Destroy.
Season 51 of “Saturday Night Live” will continue in early 2026 and run through the end of the television season in May.
