Bowen Yang Apologizes to Ariana Grande for Mouthy ‘SNL’ Kiss
During a podcast interview, Grande told Yang she was left “shaking” by the experience—in a good way.
NBC/Will Heath/NBC via Getty Images
Saturday Night Live star Bowen Yang hilariously announced on Wednesday that he wanted to apologize for kissing Ariana Grande “too much” during the show in an episode of his Las Culturistas podcast.
Grande hosted SNL for a second time on Oct. 12—in promotion of the upcoming Wicked musical movie, in which Yang also stars. And though she mostly stayed away from showcasing her singing talents this time around on the SNL—the actual musical guest was Stevie Nicks—she seemed to wow the live audience with her comedic timing.
The particular sketch in question, titled “Charades With Mom,” saw Grande play a mother meeting her son’s boyfriend, Yang, for the first time. When they all sit down for a game of charades, things go off the rails between the two characters.
The confrontation culminates in fisticuffs and a kiss—which wasn’t planned, according to Grande and Yang.
“When we rehearsed it, [I had] a little thought in my head,” Grande recalled. “I didn’t say anything because I was like, ‘Everyone’s going to think I’m absolutely insane and too comfortable.’ But I [thought to myself], ‘How funny would it be if we kissed at the end?’”
Grande said the spontaneous moment was the result of being “dropped in” the moment. “And it felt like what these people needed at that time.”
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Yang felt he went for it a little too much, he said adding, “I really have to apologize to you in person ... I opened up my mouth too much when we kissed on SNL.”
Grande agreed, saying, “You absolutely did.” She added, “I was shaking after. Not in a bad way. Just in a disarming way.”
Yang laughed and said, “I’m so sorry.”
According to Grande, the her character was modeled off of her real mother, Joan. And she felt what everyone needed in that moment was a release.
“It felt like what these people needed at that time,” she said. “It felt like what these characters required. I’m all for it.”
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