Kenan Thompson, who is in his 17th season as a performer on Saturday Night Live, covered a wide range of show lore in a 90-minute appearance Sunday at the New Yorker Festival.
The firing of debut cast member Shane Gillis in September before his first episode and after racist jokes and comments surfaced online, reflects the current “woke times,” Thompson said. The mood has changed since the 2016 presidential election, and the job of all comedians has fundamentally shifted, he maintained. “It’s very touchy out there,” he said. “It’s interesting to see things like that happen, whatever side of the argument you’re on,” he said. “I don’t think any of us who work there go out with the intent to offend or people or hurt anyone’s feelings. Matching with that ideology, that’s the brand [show producers and NBC] want to keep alive.”
Other topics covered in the conversation...
The firing of debut cast member Shane Gillis in September before his first episode and after racist jokes and comments surfaced online, reflects the current “woke times,” Thompson said. The mood has changed since the 2016 presidential election, and the job of all comedians has fundamentally shifted, he maintained. “It’s very touchy out there,” he said. “It’s interesting to see things like that happen, whatever side of the argument you’re on,” he said. “I don’t think any of us who work there go out with the intent to offend or people or hurt anyone’s feelings. Matching with that ideology, that’s the brand [show producers and NBC] want to keep alive.”
Other topics covered in the conversation...
- 10/14/2019
- by Dade Hayes
- Deadline Film + TV
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