Saturday Night Live alum and comedy icon Molly Shannon names one potential successor to Lorne Michaels.
Per TV Insider, Shannon responded to the question of who would be up for filling Michaels’ shoes as showrunner when he eventually steps down, saying, «It’s his show, his vision. There’s no one who could replace him.» Shannon added, «It would not be the same show. He’s just a one-of-a-kind genius. Brilliant. Smart.»
When the suggestion of Kenan Thompson filling in for Michaels as showrunner came up, however, Shannon said, «I love this idea.» Shannon went on to call Thompson «the greatest,» adding that the longtime cast member and former star of hit series such as All That and Kenan and Kel is «so talented.»
Thompson has been a fan-favorite Saturday Night Live cast member for more than two decades at this point, having joined the cast of the long-running sketch comedy series back in 2003 after a string of feature film appearances throughout the ’90s and early 2000s.
Thompson’s time with Saturday Night Live has more than proven his value as both a creative and comedian, although it hasn’t been without its struggles. Back in April, Thompson was open about his personal diagnosis of GERD, or gastroesophageal reflux disease, which came after two years of battling the condition unaware of its cause.
«It was a suffering-in-silence situation. I don’t know if I was necessarily embarrassed to talk to a doctor — I just didn’t know if I needed to,» Thomspon said at the time. «I didn’t know there was a real medical term for it,» Thompson added before noting that he has since found treatment for his symptoms.
What Kenan Thompson Thinks About His Time at Saturday Night Live
After 22 seasons with the show, Thompson is officially the longest-tenured of any current cast member, although that doesn’t mean his future is set in stone. Thompson previously confirmed in May that he had yet to sign a contract for another season at Saturday Night Live, explaining, «I don’t want to be in the way of someone else, or I don’t want to be the stale old man riding the same thing. That doesn’t really happen that much at SNL, but there’s no guarantees, I guess. I mean, I love that place. It’s one of my favorite places to be.»
Saturday Night Live is streaming on Peacock.
