Kenan Thompson Says He Nearly Cried When Dave Chappelle Told Him He Was Good At His Job

Earlier this weekend, Kenan Thompson was a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, not long before Dave Chappelle appeared as the host for Saturday Night Live. Ironically, Dave Chappelle was the host of the first episode after the election in 2016, and again in 2020.

Kenan said to The Tonight Show star that he knew the show was going to be “powerful,” before going on to say Chappelle had a lot of nice things to say about SNL and its crew the other night. Kenan claims Dave gave a great speech, just before the table read.

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Thompson says Dave did the same thing four years ago, adding that the comedian was a great speaker. Dave has a great talent for being an orator, and he has a “big heart and a brilliant mind,” Kenan explained. The SNL star obviously has a lot of respect for the comedian.

Dave told him he was “good at his job,” and Thompson nearly started crying, Kenan admitted. Kenan went on to compare Dave to some of the other greats, including Eddie Murphy, Chris Rock, and Tracy Morgan. And as far as he is concerned, Dave is right up there.

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SNL fans know Thompson has been on the show longer than any other member. He first got the job on the sketch-comedy back in 2003 and hasn’t left since. Last night, Chappelle was the host alongside the musical guest, The Foo Fighters.

Regarding what Chappelle has been up to lately, it was revealed earlier last month that Dave’s series, The Chappelle’s Show, was finally coming to Netflix. Fans of Dave know the series has gone down in history as one of the greatest sketch-comedies of all time.

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It was taken off the air after just two seasons, however, because of a conflict between Chappelle, the writers, and Comedy Central. After the show went on hiatus, Dave reportedly spent some time in South Africa, came back to the USA, and then took a few years off from the business.