Bowen Yang has addressed the reaction from actor Aimee Lou Wood to a recent Saturday Night Live sketch that referenced her White Lotus character. Speaking to Extra, Yang said Wood’s response was “completely valid.”
The April 12 sketch, titled The White POTUS, blended characters from HBO’s The White Lotus with figures from U.S. politics. James Austin Johnson appeared as Donald Trump, Chloe Fineman as Melania Trump, Mikey Day as Donald Trump Jr., and Jon Hamm as Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The only character kept from the original show was Wood’s Chelsea, played in the segment by Sarah Sherman with enlarged false teeth and an exaggerated British accent.
Wood called the segment “mean and unfunny” in a post on Instagram, and said Sherman was “punching down” on her character and performance. She also commented on the accent used, writing, “At least get the accent right, seriously. I respect accuracy, even if it’s mean.”
Yang said that while SNL is known for its satire, reactions like Wood’s serve as reminders of the effects these portrayals can have. “With parody, you kind of forget the sort of human, emotional cost that it sort of extols on someone,” he said. “Everyone at SNL is just a fan of the show, obviously a fan of her. We just think that she should be so proud of the work that she put into the season.”
Wood later said that SNL cast members had reached out to her directly and that Sherman sent her flowers. Yang acknowledged that the conversation helped raise awareness about how satire is received. “You need those reminders every now and then that parody can go too far sometimes,” he said. “We, as comedians, can take account for that instead of banging our foot and saying that we should be able to say whatever we want. That’s just culture.”
