Scorecard Research Beacon
Search Icon
Culture September 12, 2019

'Saturday Night Live's' Bowen Yang breaks ground as 1st East Asian cast member

WATCH: News headlines today: Dec. 23, 2020

"Saturday Night Live" just made some serious history, announcing that Bowen Yang has been promoted from writer to full-time cast member.

The show tweeted out the news Thursday, along with two other additions to the show.

(MORE: 'SNL' debates what would cause Republicans to stop supporting Donald Trump)

🚨 Season 45 Alert 🚨

Welcome to the cast, @chloefineman, @Shanemgillis, and @bowenyang!

— Saturday Night Live - SNL (@nbcsnl) September 12, 2019
PHOTO: Writer Bowen Yang as Kim Jong Un, backstage at "Saturday Night Live," March 30, 2019.
NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images, FILE
Writer Bowen Yang as Kim Jong Un, backstage at "Saturday Night Live," March 30, 2019.

But Yang, of Chinese descent, becomes the first East Asian cast member in more than 40 years of the storied sketch show.

Other alums of Asian descent including Fred Armisen, who's a quarter Korean.

Some of Yang's envelope-pushing work on the sketch show include a turn as Kim Jong Un last season, which is also when he started as a writer for "SNL."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Bowen Yang 杨伯文 (@fayedunaway) on

(MORE: Marvel is making a movie with its first Asian lead and it's going to be epic)

Yang, in addition to working on "SNL," has been working on TV series for the better part of a decade, including "Broad City," "Isn't It Romantic" and "The Outs."

He also started the "Las Culturistas" podcast with his friend Mat Rogers.

"SNL" returns with new episodes later this month.