Bowen Yang Dressed Up As Dobby On SNL To Talk About JK Rowling, But His Costume Did Not Cooperate

Bowen Yang put in a wild appearance on SNL's Weekend Update this week. He dressed up as Harry Potter’s Dobby The House Elf to talk about author JK Rowling and her recent back-and-forth with Emma Watson on trans rights. His elaborate make-up and costume were on point when he first came out, but unfortunately or perhaps fortunately given how funny it ended up being, his get-up did not exactly cooperate.

The outfit mishap occurred less than a minute after Weekend Update co-host Michael Che introduced him. In character as Dobby, he said his master JK Rowling sent him out to talk about trans people but then backpeddled and said he wasn’t supposed to say who his master was. He then began hitting his head on the desk when his tunic popped open. It took him a bit to realize what was happening, much to the audience’s amusement. You can check out the unexpected moment below…

Weekend Update: Dobby The House Elf on J.K. Rowling - SNL - YouTube

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SNL has had a ton of good performers over the years, but it’s the truly great ones that can go with a weird moment and turn it into something even better. The ad-libbed line of “Dobby’s come undone” with a little smile was a perfect way to play that off, and Yang deserves a serious shoutout for jumping over the desk at the end of the sketch and still going crazy. I can’t imagine many cast members would have just gone with it, given the prior wardrobe malfunction, but Yang has never been one to shy away from a funny moment, even if it comes with some potential embarrassment.

Rowling’s back-and-forth with her Harry Potter lead Emma Watson has become a divisive issue for many fans. Over the last several years, the author has repeatedly used her social media to argue women’s space, such as locker rooms, sports teams and even prisons, should be reserved for biological women. Opponents, such as Watson, have argued trans women should be entitled to those spaces and that it violates their rights to exclude them.

Their opposing views and occasional public comments about each other have become a major topic amongst fans and a schism in the fanbase. As such, it’s not a surprise to see SNL comment on it, though the takeaway from most viewers on social media seemed to be more about the wardrobe malfunction than any of the viewpoints expressed. That’s not a surprise given every time something goes wrong in an SNL sketch, viewers cannot get enough of it.

Fortunately, everything else on SNL’s debut episode seemed to go pretty well. Host Bad Bunny got a chance to show off his strong comedic timing, and the show even commented on viral sensation KPop Demon Hunters. Overall, it was a solid start to the 51st season and a good way get back in rhythm after last season, which was a bit of an abnormality given the constant cameos and 50th anniversary special.

SNL will return the next two weeks with fun guest hosts. Former Weekend Update anchor Amy Poehler will be at Studio 8H again first and then she’ll be followed by pop superstar Sabrina Carpenter. I can’t wait.