After Saturday Night Live’s Bowen Yang appeared as pygmy hippo viral sensation Moo Deng on Saturday Night Live’s Weekend Update, some on social media and in the news suggested he was making fun of or attacking Chappell Roan for her stance on fame and toxic fandom.
Bowen Yang wants to make it very clear that while Saturday Night Live may exist to skewer and make fun of everything, he was definitely not mocking, making fun, of or attacking Chappell Roan in any way.
The veteran sketch performer appeared as pygmy hippo viral sensation Moo Deng during the season premiere’s “Weekend Update” segment this past weekend and pointedly compared “herself” to Chappell Roan.
Specifically, Yang’s Moo Deng was referring to how quickly they’re risen to fame and at the same time are refusing to cave to fan expectations, instead setting clear boundaries.
After the episode aired, some on social media, and in the news media, appeared to misunderstand Yang’s intent of the piece. As such, on Sunday, Yang pulled out one of those headlines to push back against it.
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“Oh geeez. ‘Mocks’???” he wrote on a slide posted to his Instagram Stories that featured an image of him as Moo Deng and Variety’s article headline, reading, “‘SNL’ Mocks Chappell Roan as Bowen Yang’s Moo Deng Takes on Crazy Fans.”
“If my personal stance and the piece aren’t absolutely clear in terms of supporting her then there it is i guess,” Yang continued. “everything she has ever asked for has been reasonable and even then we can connect it to another story about boundaries or whatever. needing the hose rn…”
That last was a nod to his Moo Deng demanding “the hose” during the bit to drink from. As for the rest of the hippo’s commentary, Yang’s Moo Deng was drawing parallels from her experience since becoming a viral sensation to some of what Roan has been speaking out against.
As with Roan posting social media posts pointedly expressing that she was going to prioritize her own mental health with clear boundaries, Yang’s Moo Deng did the same, announcing, “I need to set some boundaries.”
“I’m your favorite hippo’s favorite hippo — and I’m thirsty thirsty. Trust me, I would not be in this position without my fans,” Yang’s pygmy hippo acknowledged. “But the harassment has been intolerable. Oh my god, they’re throwing shellfish and bananas at me!”
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That phrasing led many to connect the commentary to Roan — even before Colin Jost explicitly did — as she’s referred to herself previously as “your favorite artists’ favorite artist.” Yang’s Moo Deng also pointedly noted “she” would not be endorsing either presidential candidate, which Roan also notably did.
After Jost made the overt comparison between Moo Deng’s experience to what Roan has been pushing back against, Yang’s pygmy hippo shouted, “Of course I know Chappell Roan. And, by the way, leave her alone!”
“Let her take as much time as she needs for her mental health,” Yang continued in character. “We both deserve patience and grace, so stop harassing her and stop throwing shellfish at her.”
“This is what society does,” Yang’s Moo Deng added. “It puts young women on pedestals only to knock them down with shellfish.”
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Roan is one of the hottest new artists in the industry, which has led to her very publicly pushing back against what she referred to as “entitled” and “creepy” fans, as reported by Rolling Stone, on behalf of all public figures.
She also went viral when she refused to endorse either candidate last week, though she did ultimately say she’d be voting for Kamala Harris, as covered by Billboard, while also adding, “f–k all the s–t that’s gone down in the Democratic party.”
The following day, per the Los Angeles Times, she canceled a couple of scheduled performances amid rising blowback, noting in a statement, “Things have gotten overwhelming over the past few weeks and I am really feeling it. I feel pressures to prioritize a lot of things right now and I need a few days to prioritize my health”
Chappell Roan is already scheduled to make her own Saturday Night Live debut, appearing as the musical guest when John Mulaney returns to host on November 2. Perhaps she’ll get to meet a certain pygmy hippo while there. We suspect they’ll find they have a lot in common.
