Bowen Yang Plans To Leave 'Saturday Night Live'

Kenan Thompson has been on Saturday Night Live since 2003. He started at 25 and has been on the show for almost that long. The person on the second-longest, Darrell Hammond, was on for nearly ten years less than Kenan. While Kenan has done projects outside of SNL, he has said that he plans to stay there as long as possible and has even mentioned wanting to run the joint when Lorne steps away (should that ever happen). Bowen Yang is not about that life.

Yang joined Saturday Night Live as a writer in 2018, and then in 2019, he made history as the show’s first Chinese-American cast member. Since then, he’s made an enormous impact on the show. His stand-out Weekend Update monologues often go viral (usually for the right reasons), and he is a great supporting player in sketches. Like Thompson, Yang understands the zaniness of the gig, but also when to play it straight. His success has also led him to roles outside of SNL.

Bowen was working as an actor and comedian in New York before SNL. However, he started working more as soon as he got the show. In addition to smaller roles in movies and TV shows, he was a recurring character on Awkwafina’s Nora From Queens. Lately, Yang has been snagging high-profile gigs like Wicked and a lead role in a well-received remake of The Wedding Banquet. There’s no question that Yang’s star will continue to rise. To that end, he’s considering when his time at SNL will end.

Saturday Night Live’s 50th Anniversary has given Yang the idea that his time at the show needs to come to an end. “Especially after the 50th, I’m seeing what life after the show is like and how beautiful it is, and how so many people, no matter how long they were at the show, are just with their families and loving their lives and not letting the years take away any of that experience for them,” he explained to PEOPLE. I can only imagine what it’s like looking at so many people who went through what you went through when that thing is so unique. It makes sense that it would have a profound effect on the actor.

“And then with SNL, like I said, it’s 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,” he noted. “And that inevitably requires me to sort of hang it up at some point — but I don’t know what the vision is yet.” While he won’t be leaving the show today, it makes sense that he would want to move on, especially given the effect on his life. “The new season of SNL, I’m just like, ‘Oh, right. My time isn’t my own.’ And I tell my friends, ‘I’m not going to really see you guys until June,’ ” he explained.

He goes on to say that the show is also messing with his love life, as it is an all-consuming endeavor. I’ll be bummed when Yang leaves the show. He’s a lot of fun to watch and gets the spirit and energy of it perfectly. That said, I’ll be happy for him when he goes, cause it sounds like the time is coming.