Rise to Success: Career Highlights of Bowen Yang
From career breakthroughs to professional milestones, explore how Bowen Yang made an impact.
Bowen Yang is an American actor, comedian, writer, and podcaster best known for his work on Saturday Night Live (SNL). He joined SNL as a writer in 2018 and was promoted to a cast member in 2019. Yang achieved a historic milestone in 2021 as the first SNL featured player to receive a Primetime Emmy Award nomination. He was later promoted to repertory status before the show's 47th season, solidifying his place as a prominent figure in comedy and entertainment.
2013: Worked at One Kings Lane
From 2013, Bowen Yang worked at One Kings Lane, a luxury interior and home design website, as a graphic designer.
2016: Las Culturistas Premiere
In 2016, the podcast Las Culturistas, co-hosted by Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers, premiered.
September 2018: Joined SNL Writing Staff
In September 2018, Bowen Yang was hired to join the writing staff of the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live ahead of its 44th season.
2018: Left One Kings Lane
In 2018, Bowen Yang ended his employment at One Kings Lane, where he worked as a graphic designer since 2013.
2018: Hired as SNL Writer
In 2018, Bowen Yang was hired as a staff writer on Saturday Night Live for the show's 44th season.
September 2019: Promoted to SNL Featured Player
In September 2019, Bowen Yang was promoted to featured player on Saturday Night Live for the show's 45th season, becoming the show's first ever Chinese-American cast member.
September 2019: Las Culturistas Episodes
As of September 2019, the podcast Las Culturistas had over 300 episodes.
September 28, 2019: First Episode as Regular Cast Member
On September 28, 2019, Bowen Yang's first episode as a regular cast member on Saturday Night Live aired, with Woody Harrelson as host.
October 2019: Debut on Weekend Update
In October 2019, Bowen Yang made his debut on Weekend Update (WU) as Chinese trade representative Chen "Trade Daddy" Biao on Saturday Night Live.
2019: Writing Credits on SNL
In 2019, Bowen Yang had writing credits on 21 episodes of Saturday Night Live.
2019: Viral Twitter Posts
In 2019, Bowen Yang received press coverage for his viral Twitter posts consisting of expertly-timed lip-sync videos of famous movie scenes.
January 2020: Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens Premiere
In January 2020, Bowen Yang appeared as Nora Lum's mobile app-developer cousin in the Comedy Central sitcom Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens.
September 2021: Guest on Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!
In September 2021, Bowen Yang appeared as a guest on the NPR news quiz Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!
September 2021: Promoted to Repertory Status on SNL
In September 2021, Bowen Yang was promoted to repertory status on Saturday Night Live at the start of the show's 47th season.
2021: Spoke Out Against Violence Against Asian-Americans
In 2021, Bowen Yang spoke out on the surge in violence against Asian-Americans during a Weekend Update segment on Saturday Night Live.
January 2022: Played Yao Ming on SNL
In January 2022, Bowen Yang played NBA hall-of-famer Yao Ming in a sketch on Saturday Night Live.
2022: Film Appearances
In 2022, Bowen Yang appeared in the LGBTQ romantic comedies Fire Island and Bros.
2022: Starred in Fire Island
In 2022, Bowen Yang starred in Fire Island, written by and co-starring his close friend Joel Kim Booster.
2023: Played George Santos on SNL
Since 2023, Bowen Yang has played embattled Congressman George Santos in multiple sketches on Saturday Night Live, receiving critical praise.
2024: Appears in Wicked Film Adaptation
Bowen Yang appears as Pfannee in the film adaptation of the musical Wicked, released in 2024.
2024: Appearance in Wicked
In 2024, Bowen Yang appeared in the musical fantasy film Wicked.
Mentioned in this timeline
Saturday Night Live SNL is a late-night live sketch comedy...
China officially the People's Republic of China PRC is an...
George Santos is a former American politician and convicted felon...
News encompasses information about current events disseminated through various media...
Australia officially the Commonwealth of Australia encompasses the Australian continent...
National Public Radio NPR is an American public broadcasting organization...
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