Saturday Night Live has seen cast members come and go, but Kenan Thompson has been a mainstay. The former Nickelodeon star has been part of the SNL cast for over 20 years and is the longest-tenured cast member in the show’s history. Thompson, of course, maintains that post as the 51st season continues on the 2026 TV schedule. Not surprisingly, he’s learned some secrets about SNL over the years, and he has his reasons for always being willing to pass them down to new cast members?
Thompson has seemingly gone above and beyond throughout his time on SNL. He recently appeared on The Pete Davidson Show, which is streaming with a Netflix subscription, where host and former SNL cast member Pete Davidson praised him for his kindness during their time working together. Davidson pointed out how scary it could be for someone upon first joining the show. It seems Thompson's eagerness to help others is due to the guidance he received early on:
It was a pass-down thing, that I was really wanting to be embraced and taken under a wing, you know what I mean? Because I've been in the game a while and being on Nickelodeon and having our own shows and shit, people just assumed that we were good already. Like we didn't really need much, you know, kind of like, fraternity of the biz, you know what I mean, of older -- like some people would give us tidbits, but nobody would just really be like, 'Come this way.' And that's how Tracy was for me.
Considering that Thompson had quite a successful career on Nickelodeon with All That and Kenan & Kel prior to SNL, it makes sense why people would think he wouldn’t really need a mentor. Still, SNL is a whole different beast, no matter what an actor's previous credits include. Considering Tracy Morgan exited the show by the time Thompson joined, it’s really great to hear he still managed to be like a mentor to the younger comic. In turn, Thompson was more than happy to pass down any secrets he’s learned along the way to help the new cast members settle in:
Article continues belowOnce that happened, I was like, 'Oh, this is a traditional place that I've been waiting to be involved in. And it was just my pleasure to pass down any secrets I can, you know what I'm saying? Because, yeah, Tracy was like 'Let me show you something.' But no one can tell you all the things, you know what I'm saying? So you still spend a whole lot of time discovering 'Oh shit I'm late,' or 'I didn't hear the call' all this other shit.
Season 51 of SNL welcomed five new cast members, which is a relatively significant number. Five fresh faces means there are five new players who likely have to get their footing when it comes to the ins and outs of working on the show. Luckily, they have some very nice cast members who are more than willing to make them feel right at home. For example, James Austin Johnson has kept up a tradition that Kyle Mooney had, having dinner with the new cast members.
Perhaps one of the best aspects of SNL is that there's a sense of camaraderie amongst the ensemble. Also, everyone who's currently working at Studio 8H knows what it's like to be new to the job. So, whenever new cast members join, it's likely that veteran cast members know what they’re feeling and understand what they’re going through. Quite frankly, I love the bonds that tie these actors together.
Additionally, I do wonder what secrets the new crop of cast members will pass down themselves if they remain on the show for years to come. More immediately, though, I'm just pleased they have Kenan Thompson around to help guide them through the experience.
Saturday Night Live airs at 11:30 p.m. ET, and episodes can be streamed with a Peacock subscription.
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