Saturday Night Live's Bowen Yang bares his soul in a heartfelt revelation about the "agonizing and damaging" journey through conversion therapy. In an advance snippet from NBC's Sunday Sitdown with Willie Geist, Yang and the Sunday Today anchor delve into the harrowing tale of how, as a teenager, the Wedding Banquet star was compelled by his parents to undergo gay conversion therapy.
"I 'came out' inadvertently, when my parents stumbled upon something and exclaimed, 'Oh, we hadn't realized this was what we were facing,'" Yang confides in Willie Geist in the video preview. Acknowledging their bewilderment, Yang extends compassion to his parents. "I grant them ample forgiveness because they were devoid of any frame of reference," he remarks.
The comedian and actor elaborates that his parents posed an ultimatum: attendance at conversion therapy would pave the way for him to attend New York University and live with his elder sister. "Little did those unsuspecting souls realize that NYU is one of the most gay-friendly institutions in the nation," Yang jokes, noting that conversion therapy was the sole condition for his departure from Denver.
"I sort of played along, indulging both them and myself in this charade to uncover its true nature," shares the Las Culturistas podcast host. Yang admits that he was oblivious to the gravity of his plight at that time but has undergone substantial healing since.
Yang has previously shed light on his experience on numerous occasions. Recently, on his podcast, he recounted it to his co-host Matt Rogers and guest Lady Gaga, highlighting how the latter's music was instrumental in his queer identity journey. "I felt like I came out all over again when 'Born This Way' was released, because, obviously, my conversion therapy experience was a bust," he revealed on the podcast.
The full episode of Yang's Sunday Sitdown is set to premiere on April 13.
