Dave Chappelle and Bowen Yang once again have the Saturday evening live stage – and this time it looked significantly less awkward.
In the final few moments of the January 18 episode, which saw Chappelle host the show for the fourth time, SNL cast members and musical guest GloRilla joined the comedian on stage to say goodbye to the audience. During the farewell, Chappelle and Yang briefly hugged each other.
The moment marked their first on-screen interaction of the evening, as Yang did not appear in any sketches with Chappelle, and it followed the comedian’s surprise appearance in the sketch comedy last January.
Saturday Night Live – SNL/X
Eagle-eyed fans were surprised when they saw the Chappelle show star in the crowd for the final goodnight during the Dakota Johnson-hosted 2024 episode. The fact that Yang stood with his arms crossed on the opposite side of the stage from Chappelle — as evidenced by awkward footage and photos that surfaced online — caused caused some viewers to speculate that he was distancing himself from the controversial comedian. Yang spoke about the distance a few months later and said this was not the case.
‘I stand where I always stand [goodnights]Yang said Variety in June. “It wasn’t physical distance that anyone created. It had to do with so many things that were completely internal.”
When asked if Chappelle’s appearance made him unhappy, Yang replied, “It was about the reaction of other people on the show. I was just confused, that’s it.”
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Chappelle sparked controversy after his 2021 Netflix stand-up special, The closerin which he made fun of the transgender community. LGBTQ+ advocacy groups condemned his rhetoric, and Netflix employees staged a walkout to protest the show. Chappelle last hosted SNL the following year, the national director of the Anti-Defamation League criticized his monologue for “popularizing” anti-Semitism.
Saturday Night Live – SNL/X
On this weekend’s episode, Chappelle delivered a 17-minute monologue and admitted he was reluctant to return as host given his tendency to stir up controversy. He added that SNL boss Lorne Michaels had to persuade him to start the first show of the new year and joked: “The moment I said yes, LA burst into flames!”
He added: “I’m tired of being controversial. I’m trying to turn over a new leaf.”
After Chappelle said it’s “way too early” to joke about the wildfires that destroyed acres of land in Los Angeles, he continued to find humor in the tragedy and even joked about the city’s gay community.
‘I’m sure there were some Arsonists,” Chappelle said of the cause of the fires. “But there were many elements that came together to make this fire the catastrophe that it was. The wind was 100 miles per hour, LA was bone dry and the levees… There were just too many factors.”
Then he quipped, “If you were a rational thinking person, you should at least consider the possibility that God hates these people…Sodomites!” He paused to laugh and added, “And that’s not true, because West Hollywood was left unscathed… Because how can you burn what’s already on fire?”