Bowen Yang says he struggled to play JD Vance on SNL because Vance ‘doesn’t have a personality’

Saturday Night Live (SNL) star Bowen Yang has admitted he was initially hesitant about playing Donald Trump’s running mate JD Vance in a sketch.

The Fire Island and Wicked star made his debut as the Ohio senator on the long-running comedy show in September but has said at one time he thought he was the wrong choice.

Speaking to Them, he said: “Up until the show, I tapped [SNL creator Lorne Michaels] on the shoulder and I was in the full beard and was like, ‘You can do a buy back if you want’.” 

Michaels insisted he take on the role of the Republicans’ choice for vice-president but at first Yang struggled to relate to Vance on any level. However, he had a breakthrough when he watched the Netflix adaptation of Vance’s memoir Hillbilly Elegy. 

Vance had written: “At the time, the only thing I knew about gay men was that they preferred men to women. This described me perfectly.” 

The drama, directed by Oscar-winner Ron Howard, chronicles how a young Vance (played by Owen Asztalos) questioned his sexuality and thought he was gay, but his exploration was shut down by his “mamaw” (Glenn Close). Vance came to the conclusion that he was straight.

Yang, who is gay, said this moment altered his perception of Vance. “I was like: Oh, this guy doesn’t have a personality because he’s never had the spine to claim it.”

On the real-life campaign trail, Vance has managed to misgender himself, seen old photographs of him in drag resurface, despite often voicing anti-trans views, and wasn’t happy when moderators fact-checked him during a televised debate with Democratic vice-presidential rival Tim Walz.

Yang’s appearance on SNL continued with the vice-presidential debate, with Jim Gaffigan playing Walz.

During the sketch, with Heidi Gardner and Chloe Fineman as CBS News moderators Norah O’Donnell and Margaret Brennan, Yang wastes no time in making fun of Vance, particularly his controversial “childless cat lady” comments.

“Thank you for having me. I want to begin with something that will appeal to women voters. I understand that both moderators are mothers, and I like that,” he said.

Meanwhile, instead of preparing an opening statement, Walz is grading midterm papers. He was a high school social studies teacher, football coach and gay-straight alliance advisor before he entered politics.

One of the presenters pushes forward: “OK, we begin tonight with the topic of Israel. Senator Vance, how would you solve the ongoing crisis in the Middle East?”

Yang’s Vance answers: “You know that is such an important question, Margaret. One that deserves an answer because it’s important and it’s a question that you asked of me tonight.”

Fineman’s Brennan responds: “You’re not going to answer, are you?” which brings the reply: “No I’m not.”

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