‘I Am Sort Of A Fish Out Of Water’: The Story Behind Why SNL Scripts Are Written Differently For Kenan Thompson Compared To Other Cast Members

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Saturday Night Live (SNL) will reach a significant milestone in its 2025 television lineup as it marks the 50th anniversary of its debut in 1975. Incredibly, one cast member has been with the show for almost half of this impressive run – Kenan Thompson. Known for his work on All That, Thompson is now in his 22nd season and has shared insights into why the writers create sketches uniquely tailored for him compared to other cast members.

The longest-serving star from Saturday Night Live (SNL) recently graced the Chazz Palminteri Show for a chat about his professional journey, creative influences, and his unique experience as an outsider on the long-standing NBC program. Stream all of Thompson’s seasons to date with a Peacock subscription now. During their conversation, Palminteri brought up Lorne Michaels, the creator of SNL, who commented that sketch comedy writers could simply add “Kenan Reacts” to scripts instead of providing specific directions. In response, Thompson shared:

It’s incredibly complimentary as I sometimes feel out of my element, given that I primarily identify myself as an actor. While I do a significant amount of comedy, I don’t classify myself as a stand-up comedian or someone who has formal improv training. Instead, I began my career at a young age and have mainly worked within the realm of comedy.

Kenan Thompson is primarily recognized for his contributions to comedic productions, encompassing sitcoms such as “Kenan & Kel” at the start of his career, which unfortunately ran only for two seasons from 2000-2002. However, he gained significant fame through his work on sketch comedy shows, dating back to Nickelodeon’s “All That” in 1994, followed by more than three decades with Saturday Night Live (SNL).

However, he identifies more as an actor than a comedian, and this strategy seems effective for him. Yet, it’s a methodology that may not be applicable to every script for the Saturday Night Live (SNL) cast, as he explained further.

I’ve performed stand-up comedy at colleges and similar events, but for my audition for SNL, I had to do stand-up comedy, which was really scary. However, I didn’t grow up as a stand-up comedian; I’m an actor. In other words, when it comes to acting, just throw the ball to me, and I’ll catch it because that’s what actors do when you trust them with their roles.

Kel Mitchell, famously known for his roles in “Good Burger” and “Kenan & Kel” alongside Thompson, once shared a humorous account of his failed attempt at stand-up comedy as an audition for “Saturday Night Live”. Interestingly, Thompson also looks back on his own audition with less enthusiasm, but acing it undeniably had a profound impact on his life and career.

As a fan who fondly remembers Kenan Thompson from his days on All That and eagerly anticipates his sketches during each new season of SNL, I’m consistently delighted by his ability to bring laughter to audiences without often showing signs of strain. However, it’s important to note that staying with SNL for as long as he has undoubtedly had its emotional challenges, but the humor never seems to falter.

Nevertheless, the YouTube channel for the comedy show devotes an entire video to “Kenan Reacts” clips, which I believe are particularly amusing when they feature Kenan’s reactions to Steve Harvey. Here’s a link if you’d like to check them out:

It’s great to hope that Kenan Thompson won’t depart from Saturday Night Live anytime soon, as the show is currently taking a break during winter. If you’re craving more, past episodes can be streamed on Peacock. Given his recent remarks about seeing himself as an actor rather than a comedian, it would be intriguing to watch him take on a more serious role in future projects. Although Kenan wasn’t your typical slapstick sitcom, it was still a sitcom format.

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2025-01-07 17:07