Chris Kelly (writer)

Last updated
Chris Kelly
Born (1983-09-07) September 7, 1983 (age 41)
Sacramento, California, U.S.
Alma mater University of California Irvine
Occupations
  • Screenwriter
  • director
Years active2005–present
Awards Peabody Award (2009)

Christopher Kelly (born September 7, 1983) is an American screenwriter and director known for his work on Saturday Night Live (SNL), and writing and directing the autobiographical film Other People that premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. He has received five Emmy Award nominations for his work on SNL.

Contents

Career

Early career

Kelly grew up in Sacramento, California, the son of Joanne née Kellogg (1960–2009) Kelly. He has a sister, Janelle, and a half sister, Katie, from his mother's remarriage. [1] [2] He attended and graduated from Sheldon High School. [3] He attended college at UC Irvine. [4] He was a staff writer and director at Funny or Die and Onion News Network , the latter of which won the 2009 Peabody Award. He was also Head Writer for Matt Besser's Comedy Central special This Show Will Get You High in 2010. Kelly also performed at NYC's Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre with his storytelling show Chris Kelly: America's Princess Diana, and before that, wrote, directed and starred in the play Oh My God, I Heard You're Dying! He was on various Maude Teams as both a writer and actor, including Stone Cold Fox, 27 Kidneys, and Thunder Gulch, and was a frequent monologist at ASSSSCAT in both NYC and LA. [5]

Saturday Night Live

Kelly joined Saturday Night Live as a staff writer in 2011 for the 37th season. He was promoted to a supervising writer on the 40th season. Along with his SNL writing partner, Sarah Schneider, Kelly has created many sketches including: "(Do It On My) Twin Bed," "Back Home Ballers," "The Beygency" (about Beyoncé), and "First Got Horny 2 U." [6] He and Schneider primarily wrote for Aidy Bryant and Kate McKinnon, [6] including "Dyke and Fats." [7] Kelly has been nominated for five Primetime Emmy Awards for his work on SNL.

In August 2016, it was announced that Kelly and Schneider would be co-head writers for SNL's 42nd season. [8] [9] Kelly was the first openly gay head writer of SNL. [10] Both Kelly and Schneider left SNL after the completion of the 42nd season. [11]

Broad City

Kelly is also a writer and consulting producer on Comedy Central's Broad City , which earned him a nomination for the Writers Guild of America Award for Television: Comedy Series. [12] He was a self described fan of the Broad City web series and joined the show as a writer and consulting producer when it was picked up as a series on Comedy Central. [13]

The Other Two

Along with SNL co-headwriter Schneider, Kelly is the creator and executive producer (along with Lorne Michaels) of The Other Two , which premiered on January 24, 2019, on Comedy Central. [11] The show stars Drew Tarver, Heléne Yorke, Molly Shannon, Ken Marino, and Case Walker. [11] Season 3 received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series. [14]

Film

Kelly wrote and directed his first feature film, Other People, that premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival in the opening slot. [15] The film is about a struggling comedy writer (played by Jesse Plemons), who has just broken up with his boyfriend and moves from New York City to Sacramento to help his sick mother (played by Molly Shannon). [16] He has to live with his conservative father and younger sisters for the first time in many years and feels like a stranger in his childhood home. As his mother's health deteriorates, David tries to extract meaning from the awful experience and convince everyone that he's doing okay. [17] The film is loosely based on his own life drawing from his experience of losing his mother to cancer in 2009. [18] He was labeled one of the "13 Hot Directors to Watch" at Sundance in 2016. [15]

Personal life

In 2015, Kelly lived in Los Angeles with his boyfriend [6] and their dog Jill. [19]

Awards and nominations

Kelly received the following awards and nominations:

Peabody Award

Primetime Emmy Award

Writers Guild of America Award

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenan Thompson</span> American comedian and actor (born 1978)

Kenan Thompson is an American comedian and actor. He has been a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live since 2003, making him the longest-tenured cast member in the show's history. He was also the first regular cast member born after the show's premiere in 1975. Outside of SNL, Thompson starred on NBC's sitcom Kenan from 2021 to 2022.

<i>30 Rock</i> American television sitcom (2006–2013)

30 Rock is an American satirical sitcom television series created by Tina Fey that originally aired on NBC from October 11, 2006, to January 31, 2013. The series, based on Fey's experiences as head writer for Saturday Night Live, takes place behind the scenes of a fictional live sketch comedy show depicted as airing on NBC. The series's name refers to 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City, where the NBC Studios are located and where Saturday Night Live is written, produced, and performed. The series was produced by Lorne Michaels's Broadway Video and Fey's Little Stranger, in association with NBCUniversal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alan Zweibel</span> American author, playwright, screenwriter, producer, director, actor, and comedian

Alan Zweibel is an American writer, producer, director, comedian and actor whom TheNew York Times says has “earned a place in the pantheon of American pop culture." An original Saturday Night Live writer, Zweibel has won five Emmy Awards and two Writers Guild of America Awards for his work in television, which includes It's Garry Shandling's Show and Curb Your Enthusiasm.

Robert Morgan Carlock is an American screenwriter and producer. He has worked as a writer for several NBC television comedies, and as a showrunner for 30 Rock, which was created by his recurring collaborator, comedian Tina Fey. He co-created Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt with Fey. He co-created the television show Mr. Mayor starring Ted Danson, again with Fey.

Keith Ian Raywood is an American production designer best known as Art Director for Saturday Night Live (SNL) since 1985 and Production Designer for SNL since 1990. He has designed music videos and live performances for major recording artists, international and national commercial spots, MSG & MSG+ networks, and theatre productions both regional and in New York.

Mike Drucker is an American stand-up comedian, writer and producer known for his work on Full Frontal with Samantha Bee (2016), The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (2014) and Bill Nye Saves the World (2017).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sarah Schneider</span> American writer, actress, and comedian

Sarah Schneider is an American writer, actress, and comedian. She got her start in entertainment as a writer and actress for the comedy website CollegeHumor before becoming a writer for the television sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live, where she worked from 2011 to 2017, including a season as co-head writer alongside writing partner Chris Kelly. She has received eight Primetime Emmy Awards nominations for her work on SNL.

Donald Roy King is an American television director, producer, writer, and actor. He served as the director for Saturday Night Live from 2006 until 2021. He has "directed more hours of live network television than anyone else in the history of television," according to Michael Chein.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aidy Bryant</span> American actress and comedian (born 1987)

Aidan Mackenzy Bryant is an American actress and comedian. Bryant is most notable for being a cast member on the NBC late-night sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live for ten seasons, joining the show for its 38th season in 2012, and leaving at the end of its 47th season in 2022. For her work on the series she was nominated for three Primetime Emmy Awards, including two nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Che</span> American comedian (b. 1983)

Michael Che Campbell is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and writer. Che is best known for his work on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live, where he has served as co-anchor on Weekend Update alongside Colin Jost since 2014. Che and Jost were co-head writers at SNL from 2017 until 2022. Che and Jost co-hosted the 70th Primetime Emmy Awards in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul W. Downs</span> American actor, writer, and director

Paul W. Downs is an American actor, writer, director, and producer. He is the co-creator, co-showrunner and one of the stars of the critically acclaimed HBO Max series Hacks, for which he has received a Golden Globe, Peabody Award, and three Primetime Emmy Awards, among others. Downs first gained attention for his role in the Comedy Central series Broad City, which ran for five seasons and for which he was also a writer, director and executive producer.

Neil Casey is an American actor, writer, and comedian. Casey served as a writer for the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live from 2012 to 2013, and the Comedy Central series Inside Amy Schumer in 2014, receiving Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series for both shows. As an actor, he was a series regular on the comedies Other Space (2015) and Making History (2017). Casey also appeared in the 2016 reboot of Ghostbusters.

<i>Saturday Night Live</i> season 42 Season of television series

The forty-second season of the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live premiered on October 1, 2016, during the 2016–2017 television season, with host Margot Robbie and musical guest The Weeknd, and concluded on May 20, 2017, with host Dwayne Johnson and musical guest Katy Perry. The season removed two commercial breaks per episode in order to increase programming time. Episode 18 on April 15, 2017, was the first episode ever to be broadcast live in all four time zones within the contiguous United States. Until this episode, the show aired live only in the Eastern and Central time zones, and was tape-delayed in the Mountain and Pacific time zones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">69th Primetime Emmy Awards</span> Television awards covering 2016 and 2017

The 69th Primetime Emmy Awards honored the best in US prime time television programming from June 1, 2016, until May 31, 2017, as chosen by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. The ceremony was held on Sunday, September 17, 2017, at the Microsoft Theater in Downtown Los Angeles, California, and was broadcast in the U.S. by CBS. The ceremony was hosted by Stephen Colbert. The 69th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards were held on September 9 and 10, and was broadcast by FXX on September 16.

The forty-third season of the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live premiered on September 30, 2017, during the 2017–2018 television season with host Ryan Gosling and musical guest Jay-Z, and concluded on May 19, 2018, with host Tina Fey and musical guest Nicki Minaj. Like the final four episodes of season 42, season 43 was broadcast live in all four time zones within the contiguous United States, with the exception of the Natalie Portman/Dua Lipa episode due to the network's commitment to the NFL.

Samaria Johnson, better known as Sam Jay, is an American comedian and writer. She is best known as a writer for Saturday Night Live (2017–2020), her Netflix comedy special 3 in the Morning (2020), and as the co-creator and co-star of the HBO comedy series Pause with Sam Jay (2021–2022) and the Peacock comedy series Bust Down (2022).

Nimesh Patel is an American comedian and television writer. In 2017, he became the first Indian American writer on Saturday Night Live.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Natasha Rothwell</span> American actress and writer (born 1980)

Natasha Rothwell is an American actress and writer. She worked on the HBO television series Insecure as a writer, series regular, and supervising producer. She went on to star in HBO's The White Lotus, which earned her a nomination for Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie. In September 2024, her original scripted show How to Die Alone debuted on Hulu. It is a production of the Onyx Collective, a division of ABC Productions. She is the show's creator and also the lead actress.

The Writers Guild of America Award for Television: Comedy/Variety - Sketch Series is an award presented by the Writers Guild of America to the best writing in a comedy/variety sketch series, until 2015, sketch series competed along with comedy/variety talk programs in the category Television: Comedy-Variety Talk Series. In 2016, a separate category was added only for sketch series.

References

  1. ↑ Joanne Kelly Obituary accessed 11/23/2016
  2. ↑ "I Think I Have Overstayed My Welcome In Sacramento". Tumblr. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  3. ↑ "Sheldon High grad is lead writer for Saturday Night Live". Elk Grove Laguna News. 2016-12-05. Retrieved 2019-02-11.
  4. ↑ Dang, Mike (8 March 2016). "Inside the Thriving Comedy Career of 'SNL' and 'Broad City' Writer Chris Kelly". The Billfold. Retrieved 20 September 2016.[ permanent dead link ]
  5. ↑ "Chris Kelly". ucbcomedy.com. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  6. 1 2 3 Steiner, Amanda Michelle (November 20, 2015). "Sarah Schneider & Chris Kelly talk 'First Got Horny 2 U,' the ladies of SNL, Beyoncé, and more". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  7. ↑ "'SNL's' Sarah Schneider & Chris Kelly Reminisce About Writing 'Back Home Ballers' Sketch". aboveaverage.com. Archived from the original on 4 February 2016. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  8. ↑ Jones, Nate (August 12, 2016). "Chris Kelly and Sarah Schneider Are Your Newest SNL Head Writers". New York . Retrieved 13 August 2016.
  9. ↑ Wright, Megh (12 August 2016). "'SNL' Promotes Sarah Schneider and Chris Kelly to Co-Head Writers". Splitsider . Archived from the original on 19 September 2016. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
  10. ↑ Reynolds, Daniel (16 August 2016). "Chris Kelly Makes SNL History as First Out Head Writer". The Advocate . Retrieved 20 September 2016.
  11. 1 2 3 Wright, Megh (October 25, 2018). "Broad City Returns in January Alongside New Series The Other Two". New York . Retrieved 25 October 2018.
  12. 1 2 "2016 Writers Guild Awards Nominees". awards.wga.org. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  13. ↑ Blake, Meredith (January 17, 2014). "'Broad City' brings female misadventures to male-oriented Comedy Central". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 3, 2014. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  14. ↑ "The Other Two". Television Academy. Retrieved 2023-08-12.
  15. 1 2 Jeff Sneider And Matt Donnelly (21 January 2016). "Sundance 2016: 13 Hot Directors to Watch". TheWrap. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  16. ↑ Yohannes, Alamin (August 3, 2016). "'SNL' Writer Chris Kelly Taps Into His Life Story for 'Other People'". NBC News. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
  17. ↑ "Other People". sundance.org. Archived from the original on 22 February 2017. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  18. ↑ Dowd, A.A. (January 22, 2016). "Sundance begins with a divisive "Sundance movie," go figure". avclub.com. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  19. ↑ "Meet Jill". Instagram.com. Archived from the original on 2021-12-25. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  20. ↑ "The Peabody Awards - Onion News Network". peabodyawards.com. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.