Comedy veteran Kenan Thompson's foray into the sitcom world has come to an end. Per Deadline, Thompson's sitcom Kenan has been officially canceled at NBC after two seasons with no third season in the works. Kenan was not alone with getting the boot as the cancelation comes with the Ted Danson series Mr. Mayor also getting canceled after a two-season run. On the other side of the coin, the network gave renewal orders to Young Rock, Grand Crew, and American Auto.
Kenan was created by Jackie Clarke and David Caspe. The sitcom starred Thompson as Kenan Williams, a widowed father of two daughters, Aubrey (Dani Lane) and Birdie (Dannah Lane) who works as a morning television show host. Offering advice on how to raise his children, which is not always taken by Kenan, are his former father-in-law Rick (Don Johnson), brother Gary (Chris Redd), and friend Mika (Kimrie Lewis).
We know that the series was not canceled due to a lack of acclaim. Thompson had even scored a nomination for an Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series award at the Emmys in 2021. However, the ratings had fallen significantly by the end of season 2. Kenan started off pretty strong but lost its audience by more than half since its premiere, its season 2 finale garnering one of the lowest ratings of the show. The declining ratings likely played a big part in NBC pulling the plug.
Kenan Thompson Remains at SNL
When Kenan Thompson took on the series, his fans had concerns that it would mean that he would leave from his long-running job as a regular player on Saturday Night Live. While filming both shows made him very busy, Thompson never intended to leave SNL. This means that Kenan getting canceled doesn't make Thompson jobless so much as it gives him back some more free time. Thompson has been hosting SNL since 2003, where he remains the longest-serving cast member.
Even without Kenan, Thompson has been extremely busy. He hosted the Kids' Choice Awards last year as wella s the People's Choice Awards and even a Jonas Brothers Family Roast. He also did voiceover work for Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock and The Boys Presents: Diabolical. Thompson will appear in an episode of The Kids in the Hall revival series. The former child star, who rose to fame on Nickelodeon's All That and Kenan & Kel, also appeared in last year's comedy Clifford the Big Red Dog in a prominent role. Thompson also appeared in Home Sweet Home Alone, the Home Alone reboot that debuted on Disney+.
As someone who loves to perform, we can't imagine Kenan getting canceled will slow down Thompson's career by very much. It will just open up his schedule a bit more, allowing other movie and TV appearance offers to come onto the table. For the fans of Kenan, it's unfortunate that the series won't be moving forward, but we certainly haven't seen the last of Kenan Thompson.