Bowen Yang Cries in Last SNL Sketch With Ariana Grande, Cher in Exit

Bowen Yang said goodbye to “Saturday Night Live” with the final sketch of the night, which was also his last.

News broke on Friday that Saturday’s episode would be Yang’s final appearance as part of the “SNL” cast after being on the show for eight seasons. He first joined “Saturday Night Live” as a writer in 2018 in Season 44 and later was added to the cast as a featured player in Season 45. He was upped to be a main cast member in Season 47.

In the sketch, Yang played a flight attendant with a broken eggnog machine at the Delta One lounge who was leaving for his final shift.

“This is my last shift. It’s sad. I’m gonna miss everything about this place. The way it smells. The celebrities who come through. Just last week, Josh O’Connor came through,” Yang said, referring to last week’s “SNL” host.

Tonight’s host Ariana Grande, who co-starred with Yang in the “Wicked” movies, also appeared and said goodbye to her friend. Playing a family member of Yang’s character, Grande said, “I wish you were home but I’m so proud of you and all the eggnog you’ve made over the years. Some of it was great, some of it was rotten.”

“And a lot of it got cut,” Yang added. “But you know, I also think eggnog’s kinda like me. It’s not for everyone, but the people who like it are my kinda people.” The two sang a song together and were joined by musical guest Cher (who played the eggnog maker’s boss) on stage, and Yang teared up saying goodbye.

“Oh, Rhonda, I should have come home earlier,” he said while choking up. “I just feel so lucky that I ever got to work here. And I just wanted to enjoy it for a little bit longer. Especially the people. I’ve loved every single person who works here. Because they’ve done so much for me, especially my boss.”

During the final goodnights to close out the show, Grande gave a special shoutout to Yang: “And Bowen yang, we love you so much! Goodnight!”

Yang’s mid-season departure comes after several cast members left before Season 51 began, including Ego Nwodim, Heidi Gardner, Michael Longfellow, Devon Walker, Emil Wakim and John Higgins. Leaving in the middle of a season is rare but not unheard of — Cecily Strong, Molly Shannon and Dana Carvey did it in the past.

Outside of “Saturday Night Live,” Yang hosts the pop culture podcast “Las Culturistas” with fellow comedian Matt Rogers. For the first time, the two hosted their yearly Las Culturistas Awards as a full awards show broadcast on Bravo and Peacock. Yang also reprised his “Wicked” role as Pfannee in this fall’s hit “Wicked: For Good” musical. He and Rogers are also writing and starring in an upcoming comedy for Searchlight Pictures.