Sunday Sitdown with Willie Geist — Episode Summary

WICKED STARS: Bowen Yang on His Extraordinary Rise and the Movie Musical Magic of ‘Wicked’

Date: November 9, 2025
Host: Willie Geist
Guest: Bowen Yang (SNL star, actor, and podcast host)

Episode Overview

This episode features an in-depth, candid conversation between Willie Geist and Bowen Yang, exploring Yang’s unique journey from an immigrant family to sketch comedy star, his pivotal role in the movie adaptation of "Wicked," and the intersection of his personal and professional lives. The discussion covers Bowen's cultural upbringing, his rise at "Saturday Night Live," personal challenges, and reflections on achieving dreams once only imagined.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Bowen’s Unique Upbringing and Identity Formation

• Background and Immigration:
  • Parents emigrated from China to Australia, then Montreal, Canada, then Aurora, Colorado. (00:54–03:00)
  • Multicultural household—exposed to Mandarin, French, and English by school and family life. (13:14)
• Cultural Context:
  • Father grew up in rural poverty in Inner Mongolia; contrasts with Bowen’s suburban American life. (15:01)
  • Navigated Chinese traditions at home vs. American pop culture externally. (15:54)

    “I don’t think they were ever in conflict, especially now that I’m older. I feel like they were just balances. They were counterweighing each other...” —Bowen Yang (16:03)

2. Early Passion for Comedy and SNL

• SNL as Cultural Touchstone:
  • Used SNL to “gather information” and feel closer to American culture and New York City. (19:13)

    “SNL was my lifeline in terms of knowing what was up...made New York feel so close because New York felt so far away.” —Bowen Yang (19:13)

• Comedy Improvisation:
  • Began performing improv as a young teen in Denver, gaining crucial experience with failure and resilience. (21:11)

    “You realize that you’re okay in the end. You didn’t die. Right. You’re okay. And that’s a valuable thing to learn, especially if you work at SNL...” —Bowen Yang (21:45)

3. Personal Struggles: Coming Out and Family Expectations

• Coming Out Experience:
  • Parents were shocked, leading to conversion therapy as a condition to attend NYU. (23:21)
  • Struggle to navigate identity and personal truth through early adulthood. (25:14)

    “Identity is this really fickle thing. Like, you know, it’s not something that you arrive at until much later in life, I think.” —Bowen Yang (25:14)

4. Finding Community and Breaking Through

• College and Comedy:
  • NYU was a launchpad, with improv group as key social lifeline. (26:19)
  • Skipped med school applications to dive into NYC comedy scene, producing shows and building lasting relationships. (27:25)
• Podcasting with Las Culturistas:
  • Co-hosted with Matt Rogers, providing a major breakthrough and audience base before SNL. (28:25)
  • Created community and toured nationwide shows—critical for personal and career development. (29:35)

5. The SNL Story: Writer to Cast Member

• Long Audition & Vetting:
  • Multiple auditions over two years, first as a writer (2018), then cast member (2019). (30:32)
  • Lorne Michaels’ mentorship, ensuring Bowen understood the inner workings for greater success.

    “He said, ‘I knew... people will look at you in a very specific way because of who you are. And I needed to make sure you knew how the sausage was made, that you knew how things worked here so that I could set you up for success.’” —Bowen Yang (31:53)

• Lessons in Resilience:
  • Learning to handle public criticism and internal feedback, developing “thick skin.” (32:42)

6. Career Milestones and Memorable SNL Moments

• First SNL Sketch:
  • “Kim Jong Un” in the cold open; parents were present. (35:02)
• The “Iceberg” Sketch:
  • Landmark moment, leading to wider recognition and unexpected opportunities, like Will Ferrell emailing and Sandra Bullock inviting to a film. (37:21)

    “While the show was still on air... Will Ferrell emails me and he goes, ‘That was amazing. You need to do that every week.’” —Bowen Yang (37:46)

7. WICKED and the “Pinch Me” Moments

• The Wedding Banquet:
  • Discusses the remake, updating the original Ang Lee film for 2025, with layered themes of self-acceptance and fertility. (06:27)
  • Commentary on cultural resonance and how it paralleled Bowen’s own coming out journey. (08:38)

    “Watching this movie, having it be about this acceptance narrative for this main character... was extremely resonant for me.” —Bowen Yang (08:38)

• Landing Role in Wicked:
  • Emotional connection to the show, revisiting memories of longing for Broadway as a teen. (42:17, 53:05)
  • Intense filming experience, juggling SNL and movie shoots across the Atlantic, confronting burnout and self-worth. (44:35)

    “I wasn’t sure what I was bringing to either thing...Am I just a piece of furniture?...I value myself a lot. Other people value me in a way that I really appreciate. And I’m very, very glad I got through that, like, Ozzy experience.” —Bowen Yang (46:07)

• Oscars Moment:
  • Reflects on the fulfillment of boyhood dreams, symbolized by wearing his Wicked costume at the Oscars and return visits to the New York theater district. (42:17, 43:35, 53:05)

8. Dealing with Fame

• Incremental Rise:
  • Gradual transition into broader recognition, from podcast listeners to global fame with Wicked. (47:06)
  • Remains grounded, appreciating “normal” routines like buying baguettes at the grocery store. (48:18)

    “Also, my life is pretty much the same as it was 10 years ago...The entire baguette for myself.” —Bowen Yang (48:18)

9. Reflections at the Gershwin Theatre

• Returning to Where Dreams Began:
  • Bowen revisits the Broadway Blue Room and the Gershwin Theatre—where he once pressed his face against the glass as a young fan, now starring in the movie. (49:01, 53:05)

    “This felt so again, far away. And all that mattered was that I was close to it for just, like, a moment, you know?...And now, by God, he’s in the Wicked movies.” —Willie Geist (54:01)

• Discusses “cosmic” quality of his journey and paying tribute to the power of theater and connection. (50:17)

Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• “Is this the official sort of sign that I am a little too comfortable [at SNL]?” —Bowen Yang (03:36)
• “What I remember from Montreal was just being in a place where there were so many different things coming at you.” —Bowen Yang (13:14)
• “If one thing had gone differently...things would have ended up so differently.” —Bowen Yang (36:57)
• “My parents just sort of stumbled upon something and they were like, ‘oh, we didn’t realize this is what we were dealing with. Where we come from, this doesn’t happen.’” —Bowen Yang on family discovering his sexuality (23:21)
• “He said, ‘I needed to make sure you knew how the sausage was made...so that I could set you up for success.’” —Bowen Yang, quoting Lorne Michaels (31:53)
• “[SNL] was pop culture boot camp. It was this digest, this weekly digest on what was happening in the world...” —Bowen Yang (19:13)
• “While the show was still on air... Will Ferrell emails me [about the iceberg sketch]...” —Bowen Yang (37:46)
• “I cannot believe that it culminated in me wearing my costume at the Oscars.” —Bowen Yang, on Wicked (42:17)
• “This is the theater where you came when you were 14 with your parents and pushed your face against the glass.” —Willie Geist (53:02)
• “All that mattered was that I was close to it for just, like, a moment.” —Bowen Yang, Gershwin Theatre (54:01)
• “I don’t get too rapid up in, like, my own mythology...But being here with you is, I think, gives it the right occasion to reflect on it and think, wow, that’s pretty amazing.” —Bowen Yang (54:48)

Important Timestamps

• Introduction & Family Background: 00:54–04:22
• SNL Comfort & Weekly Rhythm: 03:05–05:17
• The Wedding Banquet Discussion: 06:27–10:32
• Montreal & Colorado Childhood: 13:14–15:52
• Comedy Beginnings & Improv: 21:08–22:55
• Coming Out and Parental Dynamics: 23:00–26:15
• College/NYC Comedy Scene: 26:19–28:01
• Las Culturistas Podcast Origins: 28:25–29:35
• SNL Auditions/Becoming Cast Member: 30:32–33:29
• First SNL Sketch & Family Reaction: 35:02–36:40
• “Iceberg” Sketch Breakthrough: 37:21–39:10
• Wicked & Broadway Memories: 42:17–44:35, 53:02–54:01
• Wrapping Up at Gershwin Theatre: 53:02–54:48

Tone & Takeaways

The episode balances humor with emotional resonance, mirroring Bowen's self-effacing warmth and Willie Geist’s encouraging, conversational style. Listeners gain a window into how Bowen Yang’s early experiences and challenges shaped his creative vision, resilience, and humility, even as his reach and impact continue to grow on stages and screens worldwide.