Key & Peele | |
---|---|
Genre | Sketch comedy |
Created by |
Keegan-Michael Key Jordan Peele |
Directed by | Peter Atencio |
Starring | Keegan-Michael Key Jordan Peele [1] |
Theme music composer | Reggie Watts |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 5 |
No. of episodes | 53 (and 1 special) ( list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producers | Keegan-Michael Key Jordan Peele Ian Roberts Jay Martel Peter Principato Paul Young |
Producer | Keith Raskin |
Cinematography | Charles Papert |
Editors | Justin Donaldson Richard LaBrie |
Camera setup |
Single-camera
[2] Multi-camera (stage segments) |
Running time | 21–22 minutes [3] |
Production companies |
Cindylou Monkeypaw Productions Comedy Partners Martel & Roberts Productions Principato-Young Entertainment (2014–15) |
Original release | |
Network | Comedy Central |
Release | January 31, 2012 September 9, 2015 | –
Related | |
Mad TV |
Key & Peele (abbreviated to K&P) is an American sketch comedy television series created by Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele for Comedy Central. Both Key and Peele previously worked on Mad TV. [4]
Each episode of the show consists mainly of several pre-taped skits starring the two actors. The sketches cover a variety of societal topics, often with a focus on American popular culture, ethnic stereotypes, social awkwardness and race relations. [5] Key & Peele premiered on January 31, 2012 [6] and ended on September 9, 2015, with a total of 53 episodes, over the course of five seasons. A special titled "Key & Peele's Super Bowl Special" aired on January 30, 2015.
Key & Peele won a Peabody Award and two Primetime Emmy Awards and has been nominated for various other awards, including Writers Guild Award, NAACP Image Award and 16 additional Primetime Emmy Awards in various categories.
Comedy Central also maintains an official YouTube channel for the series, which currently has over 5.6 million subscribers and 2.4 billion views, as of May 5, 2024.
In the first three seasons, an episode would consist of a cold open, with a short sketch. After the intro plays, the two hosts introduce themselves to a studio audience and explain a possible situation, with the following sketch having a similar situation. The show then follows this pattern, with a number of sketches, each varying in length. However, not all the segments are introduced by a studio segment nor are they necessarily on a similar or connected theme. Many of the show's sketches follow a similar comedic form, specifically taking a comedic premise, situation, or turn of phrase, and repeat it in a more extreme fashion, thereby 'upping the ante' of comedic absurdity as the sketch unfolds. As an example, in popular sketch "Consequences", a guest speaker is brought to a school assembly to warn students about the consequences of their youthful misadventures. The speaker starts by telling a story of pattern of youthful misbehaviors and minor substance-use, such as smoking cigarettes and "hanging out on the street late at night" leading to misdemeanors and petty crime, through to "real crimes" which resulted in "being shot out of a catapult into the mouth of a dragon", and later being "sucked into a wormhole, consequences!". [7] Additionally, Key and Peele's sketches often poke fun at aspects of race relations in the modern-day United States, as well as Black American culture writ large.
In the last two seasons, the show eschewed a studio audience in favor of a pre-shot narrative, featuring the duo discussing a concept during a car ride, as the introduction to their sketches. In the last episode, it is revealed that the car ride is an extension of one of the first sketches from the first episode, as they finally stop the car in the middle of the road, look around, and utter "Bitch!" to one another.
The series was first announced in June 2011 by Comedy Central. [1] In anticipation of the show, Key and Peele launched a web series in support of the program. [8] The series premiered in January 2012 on Comedy Central in the U.S. and on The Comedy Network in Canada. [9] [10] The first episode drew 2.1 million viewers, making it the most-watched Comedy Central launch since 2009. [11]
The series was renewed for four more seasons, beginning in September 2012, [12] September 2013, [13] September 2014, [14] and July 2015. [15] The last episode aired in September 2015. [16]
Season | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
First aired | Last aired | |||
1 | 8 | January 31, 2012 | March 20, 2012 | |
2 | 10 | September 26, 2012 | November 28, 2012 | |
3 | 13 | September 18, 2013 | December 18, 2013 | |
4 | 11 | September 24, 2014 | December 10, 2014 | |
Special | January 30, 2015 | |||
5 | 11 | July 8, 2015 | September 9, 2015 |
The first two seasons of Key & Peele received positive reviews, maintaining a score 74 of 100 by the review aggregator site Metacritic. [24] The third season of Key & Peele received critical acclaim, receiving a score of 82 on Metacritic. [25] The series won a Peabody Award in 2013 "for its stars and their creative team's inspired satirical riffs on our racially divided and racially conjoined culture". [26] On April 24, 2012, during an interview on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, President Barack Obama told the story of how he had watched the Key & Peele sketch featuring himself with "Luther, his Anger Translator", saying that "It's pretty good stuff – it's good stuff." [27] Additionally, on April 25, 2015, during the White House Correspondents Dinner, Key reprised the role of Luther, President Obama's anger translator during the event. [28] Dave Chappelle has accused the show of copying the format he established years prior for Chappelle's Show, but states that he is still a fan of the show. [29]
Year | Association | Category | Nominee(s) | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
2013 | Writers Guild of America Awards [30] | Comedy/Variety (Including Talk) Series | Rebecca Drysdale, Colton Dunn, Keegan-Michael Key, Jay Martel, Jordan Peele, Ian Roberts, Alex Rubens, Charlie Sanders, and Rich Talarico | Nominated |
65th Primetime Emmy Awards [31] | Outstanding Makeup for a Multi-Camera Series or Special (Non-Prosthetic) | Scott Wheeler, Suzanne Diaz | Nominated | |
2014 | Peabody Award [32] | Entertainment honoree | Key & Peele | Won |
66th Primetime Emmy Awards [31] | Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics | Episode: "Substitute Teacher #3; Joshua Funk, Rebecca Drysdale for "Les Mis" | Nominated | |
Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series | Jay Martel, Ian Roberts, Jordan Peele, Keegan-Michael Key, Alex Rubens, Rebecca Drysdale, Colton Dunn, Rich Talarico, Charlie Sanders | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Makeup for a Multi-Camera Series or Special (Non-Prosthetic) | Episode: "East/West Bowl Rap | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Hairstyling for a Multi-Camera Series or Special | Episode: "Substitute Teacher #3" | Nominated | ||
2015 | People's Choice Awards | Favorite Sketch Comedy Series | Comedy Central | Nominated |
67th Primetime Emmy Awards [31] | Outstanding Variety Sketch Series | Comedy Central | Nominated | |
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series | Keegan-Michael Key | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series | Rebecca Drysdale, Colton Dunn, Keegan-Michael Key, Jay Martel, Jordan Peele, Ian Roberts, Alex Rubens, Charlie Sanders, and Rich Talarico | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special | Brendan Hunt, Keegan-Michael Key, Jordan Peele, and Rich Talarico for Key & Peele's Super Bowl Special | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Picture Editing for Variety Programming | Phil Davis, Christian Hoffman, and Rich LaBrie (Segment: "Scariest Movie Ever") | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Hairstyling for a Multi-Camera Series or Special | Episode: "Aerobics Meltdown" | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Makeup for a Multi-Camera Series or Special (Non-Prosthetic) | Episode: "Episode 406" | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Short-Format Live-Action Entertainment Program | Key & Peele Presents Van and Mike: The Ascension | Nominated | ||
2016 | 68th Primetime Emmy Awards [31] | Outstanding Variety Sketch Series | Comedy Central | Won |
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series | Keegan-Michael Key | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series | Comedy Central | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Hairstyling for a Multi-Camera Series or Special | Episode: "Y'all Ready for This?" | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Make-up for a Multi-Camera Series or Special (Non-Prosthetic) | Episode: "Y'all Ready for This?" | Won | ||
Outstanding Picture Editing for Variety Programming | Rich LaBrie, Neil Mahoney, Nicholas Monsour, and Stephen Waichulis for Episode: "The End" | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Production Design for a Variety, Nonfiction, Reality, or Reality-Competition Series | Episodes: "Y'all Ready For This?"; "The End" | Nominated |
Key & Peele have also created a YouTube commentary of their episodes under their alter-egos Vandaveon Huggins and Mike Taylor. [33] Vandaveon and Mike analyze an episode, and suggest that low brow humor would make it funnier. These videos were also added to On Demand offerings of Key & Peele episodes. On March 12, 2014, Comedy Central announced the network was developing an animated spinoff starring Vandaveon and Mike as 12-year-old hall monitors, in association with Key and Peele. [34]
Key and Peele have appeared as a comedic duo, usually in tribute to the show, in various film and television series. This includes the following:
On September 25, 2012, Comedy Central and Paramount Home Entertainment released "Key and Peele – Season 1" on DVD and Blu-ray Disc. Both formats feature bloopers, outtakes, a "Poolside Interview," audio commentary with Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele, "Backstage," "Split Their Pants," Key & Peele live at the South Beach Comedy Festival, and an easter egg of the show's theme song. [35]
The show generally aired on international localized versions of Comedy Central. It premiered in Australia on The Comedy Channel on August 9, 2012. [36]
Key & Peele | |
---|---|
Genre | Sketch comedy |
Created by |
Keegan-Michael Key Jordan Peele |
Directed by | Peter Atencio |
Starring | Keegan-Michael Key Jordan Peele [1] |
Theme music composer | Reggie Watts |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 5 |
No. of episodes | 53 (and 1 special) ( list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producers | Keegan-Michael Key Jordan Peele Ian Roberts Jay Martel Peter Principato Paul Young |
Producer | Keith Raskin |
Cinematography | Charles Papert |
Editors | Justin Donaldson Richard LaBrie |
Camera setup |
Single-camera
[2] Multi-camera (stage segments) |
Running time | 21–22 minutes [3] |
Production companies |
Cindylou Monkeypaw Productions Comedy Partners Martel & Roberts Productions Principato-Young Entertainment (2014–15) |
Original release | |
Network | Comedy Central |
Release | January 31, 2012 September 9, 2015 | –
Related | |
Mad TV |
Key & Peele (abbreviated to K&P) is an American sketch comedy television series created by Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele for Comedy Central. Both Key and Peele previously worked on Mad TV. [4]
Each episode of the show consists mainly of several pre-taped skits starring the two actors. The sketches cover a variety of societal topics, often with a focus on American popular culture, ethnic stereotypes, social awkwardness and race relations. [5] Key & Peele premiered on January 31, 2012 [6] and ended on September 9, 2015, with a total of 53 episodes, over the course of five seasons. A special titled "Key & Peele's Super Bowl Special" aired on January 30, 2015.
Key & Peele won a Peabody Award and two Primetime Emmy Awards and has been nominated for various other awards, including Writers Guild Award, NAACP Image Award and 16 additional Primetime Emmy Awards in various categories.
Comedy Central also maintains an official YouTube channel for the series, which currently has over 5.6 million subscribers and 2.4 billion views, as of May 5, 2024.
In the first three seasons, an episode would consist of a cold open, with a short sketch. After the intro plays, the two hosts introduce themselves to a studio audience and explain a possible situation, with the following sketch having a similar situation. The show then follows this pattern, with a number of sketches, each varying in length. However, not all the segments are introduced by a studio segment nor are they necessarily on a similar or connected theme. Many of the show's sketches follow a similar comedic form, specifically taking a comedic premise, situation, or turn of phrase, and repeat it in a more extreme fashion, thereby 'upping the ante' of comedic absurdity as the sketch unfolds. As an example, in popular sketch "Consequences", a guest speaker is brought to a school assembly to warn students about the consequences of their youthful misadventures. The speaker starts by telling a story of pattern of youthful misbehaviors and minor substance-use, such as smoking cigarettes and "hanging out on the street late at night" leading to misdemeanors and petty crime, through to "real crimes" which resulted in "being shot out of a catapult into the mouth of a dragon", and later being "sucked into a wormhole, consequences!". [7] Additionally, Key and Peele's sketches often poke fun at aspects of race relations in the modern-day United States, as well as Black American culture writ large.
In the last two seasons, the show eschewed a studio audience in favor of a pre-shot narrative, featuring the duo discussing a concept during a car ride, as the introduction to their sketches. In the last episode, it is revealed that the car ride is an extension of one of the first sketches from the first episode, as they finally stop the car in the middle of the road, look around, and utter "Bitch!" to one another.
The series was first announced in June 2011 by Comedy Central. [1] In anticipation of the show, Key and Peele launched a web series in support of the program. [8] The series premiered in January 2012 on Comedy Central in the U.S. and on The Comedy Network in Canada. [9] [10] The first episode drew 2.1 million viewers, making it the most-watched Comedy Central launch since 2009. [11]
The series was renewed for four more seasons, beginning in September 2012, [12] September 2013, [13] September 2014, [14] and July 2015. [15] The last episode aired in September 2015. [16]
Season | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
First aired | Last aired | |||
1 | 8 | January 31, 2012 | March 20, 2012 | |
2 | 10 | September 26, 2012 | November 28, 2012 | |
3 | 13 | September 18, 2013 | December 18, 2013 | |
4 | 11 | September 24, 2014 | December 10, 2014 | |
Special | January 30, 2015 | |||
5 | 11 | July 8, 2015 | September 9, 2015 |
The first two seasons of Key & Peele received positive reviews, maintaining a score 74 of 100 by the review aggregator site Metacritic. [24] The third season of Key & Peele received critical acclaim, receiving a score of 82 on Metacritic. [25] The series won a Peabody Award in 2013 "for its stars and their creative team's inspired satirical riffs on our racially divided and racially conjoined culture". [26] On April 24, 2012, during an interview on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, President Barack Obama told the story of how he had watched the Key & Peele sketch featuring himself with "Luther, his Anger Translator", saying that "It's pretty good stuff – it's good stuff." [27] Additionally, on April 25, 2015, during the White House Correspondents Dinner, Key reprised the role of Luther, President Obama's anger translator during the event. [28] Dave Chappelle has accused the show of copying the format he established years prior for Chappelle's Show, but states that he is still a fan of the show. [29]
Year | Association | Category | Nominee(s) | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
2013 | Writers Guild of America Awards [30] | Comedy/Variety (Including Talk) Series | Rebecca Drysdale, Colton Dunn, Keegan-Michael Key, Jay Martel, Jordan Peele, Ian Roberts, Alex Rubens, Charlie Sanders, and Rich Talarico | Nominated |
65th Primetime Emmy Awards [31] | Outstanding Makeup for a Multi-Camera Series or Special (Non-Prosthetic) | Scott Wheeler, Suzanne Diaz | Nominated | |
2014 | Peabody Award [32] | Entertainment honoree | Key & Peele | Won |
66th Primetime Emmy Awards [31] | Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics | Episode: "Substitute Teacher #3; Joshua Funk, Rebecca Drysdale for "Les Mis" | Nominated | |
Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series | Jay Martel, Ian Roberts, Jordan Peele, Keegan-Michael Key, Alex Rubens, Rebecca Drysdale, Colton Dunn, Rich Talarico, Charlie Sanders | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Makeup for a Multi-Camera Series or Special (Non-Prosthetic) | Episode: "East/West Bowl Rap | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Hairstyling for a Multi-Camera Series or Special | Episode: "Substitute Teacher #3" | Nominated | ||
2015 | People's Choice Awards | Favorite Sketch Comedy Series | Comedy Central | Nominated |
67th Primetime Emmy Awards [31] | Outstanding Variety Sketch Series | Comedy Central | Nominated | |
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series | Keegan-Michael Key | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series | Rebecca Drysdale, Colton Dunn, Keegan-Michael Key, Jay Martel, Jordan Peele, Ian Roberts, Alex Rubens, Charlie Sanders, and Rich Talarico | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special | Brendan Hunt, Keegan-Michael Key, Jordan Peele, and Rich Talarico for Key & Peele's Super Bowl Special | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Picture Editing for Variety Programming | Phil Davis, Christian Hoffman, and Rich LaBrie (Segment: "Scariest Movie Ever") | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Hairstyling for a Multi-Camera Series or Special | Episode: "Aerobics Meltdown" | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Makeup for a Multi-Camera Series or Special (Non-Prosthetic) | Episode: "Episode 406" | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Short-Format Live-Action Entertainment Program | Key & Peele Presents Van and Mike: The Ascension | Nominated | ||
2016 | 68th Primetime Emmy Awards [31] | Outstanding Variety Sketch Series | Comedy Central | Won |
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series | Keegan-Michael Key | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series | Comedy Central | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Hairstyling for a Multi-Camera Series or Special | Episode: "Y'all Ready for This?" | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Make-up for a Multi-Camera Series or Special (Non-Prosthetic) | Episode: "Y'all Ready for This?" | Won | ||
Outstanding Picture Editing for Variety Programming | Rich LaBrie, Neil Mahoney, Nicholas Monsour, and Stephen Waichulis for Episode: "The End" | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Production Design for a Variety, Nonfiction, Reality, or Reality-Competition Series | Episodes: "Y'all Ready For This?"; "The End" | Nominated |
Key & Peele have also created a YouTube commentary of their episodes under their alter-egos Vandaveon Huggins and Mike Taylor. [33] Vandaveon and Mike analyze an episode, and suggest that low brow humor would make it funnier. These videos were also added to On Demand offerings of Key & Peele episodes. On March 12, 2014, Comedy Central announced the network was developing an animated spinoff starring Vandaveon and Mike as 12-year-old hall monitors, in association with Key and Peele. [34]
Key and Peele have appeared as a comedic duo, usually in tribute to the show, in various film and television series. This includes the following:
On September 25, 2012, Comedy Central and Paramount Home Entertainment released "Key and Peele – Season 1" on DVD and Blu-ray Disc. Both formats feature bloopers, outtakes, a "Poolside Interview," audio commentary with Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele, "Backstage," "Split Their Pants," Key & Peele live at the South Beach Comedy Festival, and an easter egg of the show's theme song. [35]
The show generally aired on international localized versions of Comedy Central. It premiered in Australia on The Comedy Channel on August 9, 2012. [36]