In a recent conversation with Rachel Sennott, SNL veteran Bowen Yang explained why he decided to leave the show mid-season. The comedian explained that he was adamant about leaving the show after Season 50, but decided to stay for a little longer after SNL boss Lorne Michaels personally requested him.
Bowen Yang opens up about his mid-season exit from SNL
Longtime SNL star Bowen Yang recently explained why he left the show mid-season in a discussion with Rachel Sennott for Variety. Yang mentioned he was ready to leave after Season 50, but when Lorne Michaels, the creator of SNL, asked him to stay on for at least the first half of Season 51, Yang could not say no.
Yang stated, “I was kind of resolute the season before, about leaving. There was a lot of uncertainty about what the show would look like after Season 50. I was like, ‘I think the show is in a great place without me.’ I never felt like I was that central to it, to be honest.”
Sennott responded that she disagreed with his final statement. Yang replied, “Well, I feel like there was a weird utility to me. I was like, ‘OK, I’ve accepted this.’ I never played the dad or the straight-man teacher. I was always there as the seasoning, and I’m like, ‘That’s great. I’m so lucky. I can’t believe I have a steady job in comedy. I will cherish it for the rest of my life.'” He continued, “And I just felt like it was the right time. And then Lorne [Michaels] called me while I was at the U.S. Open eating Coqodaq chicken, and he was like, ‘Listen, you should come back. These are the people I’ve hired. It’s a lot of new kids, and a lot of people left. You should be there to set an example for them, at least in the first half of the season. I’m telling you, it would be very important.'”
He added, “It was the first time I felt someone who made so many things possible for me, being like, ‘I need you.’ And I’m like, ‘I’m not going to turn that down.’ I felt good about it, and I was like, ‘Let’s make sure to hire these writers.’ Our friend Jack Bensinger is there now. It was my one chance to till the soil.”
Yang made his final appearance on SNL on December 20, 2025.
Originally reported by Sourav Chakraborty on ComingSoon.
