Saturday Night Live is currently on its summer hiatus, preparing to return for Season 52 on the 2026 TV schedule this fall. With a new season means possible cast exits or additions following the mass exodus ahead of Season 51 last year. After having to say goodbye to five cast members in fall 2025, fans had to say goodbye to one more when Bowen Yang departed after the Christmas show. His absence, like other former cast members, is definitely still felt, and I love Sarah Sherman’s take on what she’s been missing since he left.
Many cast members paid tribute to Yang after his final episode aired, and it’s still hard to watch the show without him. He was in his feels cleaning up the last of his stuff from 30 Rock, but luckily, he’s remained close to his former colleagues. As for Sherman, she took some vicious shrapnel from a writer about his exit, but it mostly just shows how big an impact Yang made on SNL. Sherman revealed on Deadline’s Comedy Means Business podcast what the environment was like during those first few shows post-Yang:
When Bowen left, I was like – so people made this joke, and I'm not naming names, but you know who you are. We're like, ‘Oh, Bowen's leaving. You're not going to have anyone laughing at your jokes at the table read.’ And that was like me and Bowen just like crack each other up endlessly. So I had this big Bowen laugh every Wednesday. Even if I said, like, ‘Would you like some water, sir?’ He'd be like, ‘Girl, are you crazy?’ So, when he left, I lost this big Bowen laugh, and I was like, ‘Oh shit. Like, God, my charm isn't going to get me anything without Bowen.’
For a show like SNL, cast exits happen frequently, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t still hurt... especially for the cast. Yang and Sherman grew close during their time together on the series, and Yang has hyped up her projects, and she’s probably done the same. While the 35 year-old Fire Island star has remained close to his former colleagues since his exit, I can only imagine how different the table reads were after getting back from winter break. Especially if Yang’s laugh filled up the room.
Even though it’s hard having to say goodbye to friends, Sherman does love it when new people come on and give the show something fresh. Season 51 saw five new cast members, including Ben Marshall from Please Don’t Destroy, and there’s no telling if anyone new will be joining for Season 52. Regardless, Sherman looks forward to the vibes the newbies bring:
So it's like crazy when people leave, but the new people are so awesome and they're really supportive and sweet and there’s like, kind of a good — there’s good vibes going on there right now.
The great thing about Saturday Night Live is that everyone on the cast, even the show’s longest-tenured cast member Kenan Thompson, was once a newbie. They know what it’s like to join the coveted ranks of SNL, so it’s not surprising to know that Sherman welcomes the newbies with open arms.
As of now, cast changes for Season 52 have not been revealed, and it’s unknown if there will be any cast changes. It’s possible that after losing six cast members last season, the only casting changes made will be promoting some featured cast members to repertory, hopefully fan-favorite Ashley Padilla. Season 52 will be the first full season without Bowen Yang, but maybe he can come back to host, especially with his podcast and the Las Culturistas Culture Awards doing so well. For now, fans can watch their favorite Yang moments with all seasons of SNL streaming with a Peacock subscription.
