Bowen Yang had an emotional farewell on his final Saturday Night Live episode, hosted by his friend and Wicked co-star Ariana Grande.
The episode started with Yang joined Grande in a monologue performance of All I Want for Christmas Is You, receiving a massive reaction from the live audience.
Weekend update featured a surprise return of Aidy Bryant, reprising their fan-favourite Trend Forecasters characters.
A meta sketch showed Yang as an airport employee on his last day.
Hegot emotional and reflected, “I just feel so lucky that I ever got to work here.” Instead of a Lorne Michaels cameo, musical guest Cher,Yang’s personal icon—appeared.
Yang asked for feedback, and Cher replied, “Everyone thought you were a little bit too gay. But you know what? You’re perfect for me,” which broke him emotionally as they sang Please Come Home for Christmas together with the Side to Side singer.
Earlier, Yang announced his departure in SNL midway through his eighth season.
Initially, he started his journey in this show as a writer in 2018 during Season 44, became a featured cast member in Season 45, and later received promotion to the main cast in Season 47.
Bowen Yang earned Emmy nominations for Supporting Actor in a comedy series in 2021, 2022, 2024, and 2025
