Bowen Yang says 1 'SNL' host 'begged' for very specific jokes that later drew backlash

Bowen Yang wants everyone to know that Sydney Sweeney is extremely self-confident.

“Saturday Night Live” was released at the beginning of the year” received backlash after the “Anyone But You” star hosted the long-running sketch show in March. Many criticized “SNL” for objectifying Sweeney by indulging her sexuality – with Many pointed to a skit in which Sweeney played a Hooters server.

But according to Yang, that's exactly how Sweeney wanted her appearance on “SNL.”

“She's an example of a host who came in and understood how consumed and noticed she was,” Yang said 39 minutes into Wednesday's episode of David Spade and Dana Carvey's “Fly on the Wall.”“Podcast.

“She came in and said, 'Please everyone joke about my boobs,'” the “SNL” actor recalled. “She practically begged everyone.”

Yang then shared a nice anecdote about filming the digital short film “Bowen's Straight” with Sweeney.

In the digital short film, Sweeny plays herself and confesses to “SNL” cast members Heidi Gardner and Ego Nwodim that she has a crush on Yang.

In response, Gardner and Nwodim urge Sweeney to do their recording with Yang because he is not gay, as Sweeney assumed, but is “as straight as you can be.” (Yang is openly gay in real life.)

Since the skit eventually leads to a sex scene between Yang and Sweeney, Yang told Spade and Carvey on their podcast Wednesday that the show has hired an intimacy coordinator.

Yang remembers informing Sweeney about the coordinator before filming and telling her that if she felt “uncomfortable” at any point during the sex scene, she could “drop out” or cut the scene entirely.

Sweeney's response to Yang's concern for her well-being was straight to the point – and pretty funny.

“And she says, 'Bowen, I'm in 'Euphoria,'” Yang recalls.

Sweeney built her reputation as a sexpot in her role as Cassie in Euphoria. and has filmed several nude scenes in the HBO series — a part of her job that she was initially “hesitant” about, she told HuffPost in 2019.

But five years later, Sweeney seems much more confident in taking on riskier scenes – and even narrating them GQ in March that she wanted to play up her bombshell reputation on “SNL.”

“There are so many people out there who say, 'Oh, she's famous because she showed her boobs,'” she told the magazine.

“You just learn the system,” she continued, discussing people’s assumptions about her. “You can try to fight it, but they just fight back. Even if you stand up for yourself, people will attack you for standing up for yourself.”