Bowen Yang will be absent from the “Saturday Night Live” taping on October 18th.
Sources close to the show said Yang’s absence was pre-planned for the “Wicked” star to accept the Academy Museum’s Vantage Award, which honors up-and-coming artists who challenge and recontextualize dominant narratives in television and film. He is reportedly still present to help write tonight’s episode and will appear in a pre-taped sketch.
Yang announced on her Instagram Story on Saturday that she was leaving the show overnight.
“I’m missing tonight’s show but it’s so much fun,” he wrote. “(Sabrina Carpenter) is amazing.”
As Yang noted, Sabrina Carpenter will serve as host and musical guest on Saturday’s show. This will be the two-time Emmy Award winner’s hosting debut, but she previously appeared as a musical guest on the Season 49 finale hosted by Jake Gyllenhaal. She also appeared on “SNL 50: The Anniversary Special,” singing with Paul Simon and appearing in a sketch with Marcelo Hernandez.
The season 51 premiere was hosted by Bad Bunny and had music by Doja Cat. Amy Poehler hosted the next episode and was joined by musical guest Role Models. Other upcoming hosts include Miles Teller, who will host for the second time on Nov. 26, and newcomers Nikki Glazer and Glen Powell, who will host on Nov. 8 and Nov. 15, respectively.
“Saturday Night Live” airs every Saturday at 11:30pm ET on NBC and is available to stream on Peacock. Lorne Michaels created the show in association with Broadway Video and served as executive producer.
