{"id":5082,"date":"2026-06-08T16:43:43","date_gmt":"2026-06-08T16:43:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/bowen-yang-explains-how-turning-point-phone-call-with-lorne-michaels-affected-snl-exit\/"},"modified":"2026-06-08T16:43:43","modified_gmt":"2026-06-08T16:43:43","slug":"bowen-yang-explains-how-turning-point-phone-call-with-lorne-michaels-affected-snl-exit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/bowen-yang-explains-how-turning-point-phone-call-with-lorne-michaels-affected-snl-exit\/","title":{"rendered":"Bowen Yang explains how &#8216;turning point&#8217; phone call with Lorne Michaels affected &#8216;SNL&#8217; exit"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/wp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F3%2F2026%2F06%2Fbowen.jpg?quality%3D90%26strip%3Dall\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Bowen Yang says Lorne Michaels delayed his <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2025\/12\/19\/entertainment\/bowen-yang-abruptly-leaving-snl-after-7-seasons-out-of-the-blue\/\">\u201cSaturday Night Live\u201d exit<\/a> last year in a \u201cturning point\u201d phone call.<\/p>\n<p>While chatting with Rachel Sennott for a new <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2026\/tv\/features\/bowen-yang-rachel-sennott-snl-exit-i-love-la-1236761814\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Variety interview<\/a>, published Monday, the comedian recalled receiving a call from the NBC sketch show creator while <a href=\"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/2025\/08\/25\/entertainment\/all-the-celebrities-at-us-open-2025-alec-baldwin-maude-apatow-anna-wintor-more\/\">attending the US Open<\/a> in August 2025 \u2014 and feeling \u201cresolute\u201d about quitting.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe was like, \u2018Listen, you <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2025\/09\/13\/entertainment\/how-lorne-michaels-got-bowen-yang-to-stay-on-saturday-night-live\/\">should come back<\/a>,&#8217;\u201d Yang, 35, said during the \u201cActors on Actors\u201d sit-down.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Lorne Michaels had a \u201cturning point\u201d phone call with Bowen Yang ahead of the comedian\u2019s \u201cSaturday Night Live\u201d exit (the two pictured together above with Kate McKinnon in September 2022). <span class=\"credit\">NBC via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Before the August 2025 chat, the actor (pictured above in February 2025) was \u201cresolute\u201d about leaving the sketch show. <span class=\"credit\">Patrick McMullan via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-primary-tag\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>He noted that Michaels, 81, wanted help mentoring the latest batch of cast members he\u2019d hired for Season 51.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s a lot of new kids \u2026 a <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2025\/09\/10\/entertainment\/bowen-yang-breaks-silence-on-heidi-gardners-snl-exit\/\">lot of people left<\/a>, a lot of people are coming in,\u201d Michaels allegedly said at the time. \u201cYou should be there to <a href=\"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/2025\/09\/13\/entertainment\/bowen-yang-reveals-what-lorne-michaels-privately-told-him-about-his-future-at-snl-after-mass-cast-exodus\/\">set an example<\/a> for them, at least in the first half of the season. I\u2019m telling you, it would be very important.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Yang, who called Michaels \u201creally good at closing\u201d situations, noted, \u201cIt was the first time I felt someone who made so many things possible for me being like, \u2018I need you.&#8217;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Emmy nominee was \u201cnot going to turn that down\u201d and \u201cfelt good about\u201d his chance to help \u201ctill the soil.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Instead, the Emmy nominee (pictured above in October 2022) agreed to stay on for part of Season 51. <span class=\"credit\">Kyle Dubiel\/NBC via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Michaels asked Yang to help mentor new cast members before exiting. <span class=\"credit\">Will Heath\/NBC via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Yang, who joined the show as a writer in 2018 and became a featured player the following year, announced his departure mid-season in December 2025.<\/p>\n<p>\u201ci loved working at \u2018SNL.\u2019 \u2026 i\u2019m grateful for every minute of my time there,\u201d he <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DSfSGXMkadJ\/?hl=en&amp;img_index=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">wrote via Instagram<\/a>. \u201cthank you to lorne for the job. for the standard. and for bringing everyone at work together.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A source also told us at the time, \u201cEveryone <a href=\"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/2025\/12\/23\/entertainment\/lorne-michaels-desperately-wanted-bowen-yang-to-stay-on-snl-but-heres-why-the-unhappy-star-left-in-a-hurry\/\">tried to get Bowen to stay<\/a>, from Lorne down. But he just made up his mind, he was over it. He was not happy, you could tell.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Yang (pictured above with Cher and Ariana Grande) departed after his final episode in December 2025. <span class=\"credit\">Rosalind O&#8217;Connor\/NBC via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Yang was able to help \u201ctill the soil\u201d before quitting and \u201cfelt good about\u201d the decision. <span class=\"credit\">NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Yang explained the shock decision to Sennott, 30, on Monday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere was a lot of uncertainty about what the show would look like after Season 50,\u201d the actor said. \u201cI was like, \u2018I think the show is in a great place without me.&#8217;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The \u201cWicked\u201d star, moreover, \u201cnever felt like [he] was that central\u201d to \u201cSNL\u201d and felt there was a \u201cweird utility\u201d to his role.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Yang thought the show was in a \u201cgreat place\u201d without him. <span class=\"credit\">Will Heath\/NBC via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>He felt he wasn\u2019t \u201ccentral\u201d to the cast, which he joined as a featured player in 2019. <span class=\"credit\">Will Heath\/NBC via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cI never played the dad or the straight-man teacher,\u201d he pointed out. \u201cI was always there as the seasoning.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Yang was quick to clarify, \u201c[I was like], \u2018That\u2019s great. I\u2019m so lucky. I can\u2019t believe I have a steady job in comedy.&#8217;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He \u201cwill cherish\u201d his time on the show \u201cfor the rest of [his] life\u201d \u2014 and remembered <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/01\/07\/entertainment\/bowen-yang-breaks-down-crying-over-quitting-snl-after-7-seasons\/\">\u201csobbing\u201d like a \u201cf\u2013king mess\u201d<\/a> during his <a href=\"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/2025\/12\/25\/entertainment\/bowen-yangs-final-snl-episode-sets-record-as-he-exits-against-lorne-michaels-wishes\/\">final table read<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/2026\/06\/08\/entertainment\/bowen-yang-explains-how-turning-point-phone-call-with-lorne-michaels-affected-snl-exit\/\" target=\"_blank\">Source link<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Bowen Yang says Lorne Michaels delayed his \u201cSaturday Night Live\u201d exit last year in a<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5083,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5082","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/bowen.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5082","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5082"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5082\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5083"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5082"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5082"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/login9ja.com\/global\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5082"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}