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Kenan Thompson Talks Production Company Plans, Would Love To Build DreamWorks-Esque “Machine”

Peter White
·2 min read

Kenan Thompson is a pretty busy guy. In addition to starring on Saturday Night Live and fronting and exec producing his own eponymous sitcom for NBC, Thompson exec produces Nickelodeon’s reboot of the sketch comedy All That.

He would also like to do more of the latter.

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Thompson, speaking to his old SNL pal Seth Meyers in a conversation for the Banff World Media Festival, reiterated plans to move further into production.

When asked by the late-night host whether he’s still looking at his own production company, he said, “I’d love to be as busy as I am right now and also know that I have to 300 people to work on something that has nothing to do with me, that’s very exciting. I’m a big fan of creative people all the way around the industry from set decs to make-up artists and cameramen, I’m just a big fan of the business so the idea of me being able to put a real project together and have people working and supporting their family and keeping that whole wheel in motion, that’s kind of the dream for me.”

He added that he’d love to be like Steven Spielberg, joking that he’d also like to sell his company for [rubs fingers together]. “To be like a Spielberg, to build a DreamWorks and then sell it, of course, that’s definitely one of the dreams because he’s still a creative person but he’s built a machine that employs tens of thousands of people. I think that’s one of the coolest things you can ever do in your lifetime.”

Meyers said he assumed Thompson would return to SNL for his 19th season, pointing out that Lorne Michaels wouldn’t let him go anywhere. Thompson went with it, suggesting that he will be among those cast members to return to the long-running NBC show this fall even if not all of the current cast does.

Kenan was renewed by NBC for a second season and will likely air in 2022.

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