Bowen Yang is spilling the beans on his wildly fulfilling journey on Saturday Night Live. The 35-year-old confirmed his shocking midseason exit from the sketch comedy show after seven seasons, with his final episode—hosted by Wicked costar Ariana Grande alongside musical guest Cher—aired on December 20. Before gracing the Studio 8H stage for the last time as a cast member, Bowen expressed his profound gratitude for everyone who made his experience unforgettable.
"I loved working at SNL, and most of all, I loved the people," he wrote in the caption of his December 20 Instagram post, which featured nostalgic snaps from his time on the show. "I was there at a time when many things in the world started to seem futile, but working at 30 Rock taught me the value in showing up anyway when people make it worthwhile."
Bowen's exit follows a wave of departures after the show's 50th season, including former castmates Ego Nwodim, Heidi Gardner, Michael Longfellow, Devon Walker, and Emil Wakim. The Las Culturistas cohost—who began his time at SNL as a writer before joining the cast in 2019—went on to show appreciation for his various learning experiences on the show.
"I'm grateful for every minute of my time there," he continued. "I learned about myself (not so great with wigs). I learned about others (generous, vulnerable, and hot). I learned that human error can be nothing but correct. I learned that comedy is mostly logistics and that it will usually fail until it doesn't, which is the best."
After thanking SNL cast and crew by name, Bowen went on to shower love on Ariana Grande for making his final farewell on the show even more special, adding, "Thank you, Ari, for sending me off in the dreamiest way I could imagine."
But his final offering of gratitude went to executive producer Lorne Michaels. "Thank you to Lorne for the job," Bowen added. "For the standard, and for bringing everyone at work together. They all care deeply about people in the room, any room, enjoying themselves. I can't believe I was ever included in that."
Referencing Lorne's famous line, "The show doesn't go on because it's ready, it goes on because it's 11:30," Bowen concluded his heartfelt message by adding, "The show doesn't go on because it's ready, but damn, I hope I am."
