Thompson will star in his 20th season of Saturday Night Live when season 48 kicks off on Oct. 1
Kenan Thompson’s long run on Saturday Night Live has connected him with hundreds of cast members and hosts over the years, but there is still one person on his “cast bucket list.”
Ahead of the NBC late-night sketch show’s 48th season, Thompson spoke with Entertainment Weekly, revealing his regret that he and SNL alum Tracy Morgan never officially got to work together on the series.
Thompson, 44, has been on SNL since 2003, just missing Morgan’s run from 1996 to 2003. Morgan has, however, returned to the series several times since his departure, both as a host and guest, allowing for him and Thompson to appear in sketches together.
“That guy makes me laugh so much” Thompson said. “He’s been like a very close big brother, this whole kind of experience. And I’ve never witnessed anybody more naturally hilarious — like, just off the top of his head at any given hour, any given setting, you know what I’m saying?”
He went on to praise his fellow comedian by saying of his comedic chops: “It’s just his mentality, basically. And that boy says wild things. It’s really hilarious.”
On a more serious note, Thompson shared how Morgan, 53, has “a heart of gold,” adding that, “he’s always had a kind of a big brother thing for me, you know — he’s very protective or wanting to give me knowledge and stuff like that.”
The comedian also noted that it would have been a lot of fun to “witness him in a work environment.”
“He’s one of those guys that you just got to start writing when he talks,” Thompson shared. “Because he’ll never come back to that idea again — he’s just spit-firing — so it’s on you to grab these things and then hold them and then reintroduce them to the world. But, man, he’s such a joy to be around.”
As for which former cast member he’d like to host his eventual final show with, Thompson had a few names that came to mind.
“The one cast member I would want to return for my final show question was answered when Eddie Murphy hosted, so now I have to think,” he said in a video that accompanied the EW interview. “I’ve worked with Will Ferrell because he’s hosted. He was another one where I was just like, ‘I would just love to…’ but that’s happened a few times.”
“I haven’t met Cheri yet,” he continued. “I think Cheri Oteri would be very cool to be around. Every woman I’ve ever met from SNL is insanely quick-witted, funny, smart, classy, gorgeous, like all of it. You know what I mean? It’s just a pleasure usually to be around them. So I would love to meet Cheri.”
Thompson — who hosted the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards earlier this month — previously told PEOPLE there’s “more” for him to do at the NBC series, which recently announced the departure of seven cast members and the addition of four newbies ahead of season 48.
“It’s always new every time,” he told PEOPLE and EW’s Emmys Red Carpet Live hosts Janine Rubenstein and Jeremy Parsons of what’s kept him coming back to the show for 20 seasons. “It’s exciting like that. It’s really exciting to find new, funny things, especially when you’re further down your tenure.”
The history-making Saturday Night Live star also chatted with PEOPLE in June about his early career as an actor and how he transitioned into the world of comedy.
“Growing up, I was always given comic relief roles or lines in plays even if they were serious,” he said. “I guess because I have a cute face.”
Thompson credited his theater participation as a child for introducing him to a wide array of genres, but comedy was the one that stuck.
“I grew up doing theater,” he explained. “It’s a vast variety of things that you learn in the theater, like drama, some comedy, some Shakespeare,” he continues, “But when I started getting jobs, they just continued in the comedy direction, like Mighty Ducks and then Nickelodeon.”
He added: “And then SNL for sure was like the official stamp, like you’re a comedian. You can call yourself an actor, but you’re a comedian.”
Season 48 of Saturday Night Live will premiere Oct. 1 on NBC.
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