Kenan Thompson Reveals His ‘Ultimate Favorite’ “Saturday Night Live” Costume that ‘Almost’ Brought Him to Tears Catherine Santino, Kimberlee SpeakmanMon, October 12, 2026 at 3:51 PM UTC 0 Kenan Thompson.Credit: Slaven Vlasic/Getty Kenan Thompson revealed his “ultimate favorite” Saturday Night Live costume that “almost” brought him to tears Thompson reflected on crashing Chadwick Boseman’s SNL monologue dressed as cartoon character Panthro in 2018 The longrunning cast member shared the memory during a New York Comic Con Panel on Oct.
Kenan Thompson Reveals His ‘Ultimate Favorite’ “Saturday Night Live” Costume that ‘Almost’ Brought Him to Tears
Catherine Santino, Kimberlee SpeakmanMon, October 12, 2026 at 3:51 PM UTC
0
Kenan Thompson.Credit: Slaven Vlasic/Getty -
Kenan Thompson revealed his “ultimate favorite” Saturday Night Live costume that “almost” brought him to tears
Thompson reflected on crashing Chadwick Boseman’s SNL monologue dressed as cartoon character Panthro in 2018
The long-running cast member shared the memory during a New York Comic Con Panel on Oct. 11
Kenan Thompson is remembering his “ultimate favorite” Saturday Night Live costume.
On Sunday, Oct. 11, the actor and comedian, who has been a cast member on the sketch comedy show since 2003, opened up about a particularly special moment while speaking on the NBC 100: Behind the Scenes of SNL Panel at New York Comic Con.
Thompson, 48, appeared alongside fellow cast member Sarah Sherman, makeup department head Louie Zakarian and the makeup department’s Jason Milani.
“My ultimate favorite ... it was Panthro,” said Thompson of his favorite costume on the show. “And they made me look identical to Panthro ... it was when Chadwick [Boseman] was hosting, and Panthro comes out in his monologue claiming to be the original Black Panther.”
The All That alum appeared during Boseman’s monologue when he hosted SNL in 2018, two years before his death from colon cancer in 2020. Panthro is a cartoon cat-like alien from the animated ThunderCats franchise. The bit was referencing Boseman’s role as Black Panther in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Kenan Thompson and Chadwick Boseman on ‘Saturday Night Live’ in 2018.Credit: Will Heath/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty
“I didn’t want to look in the mirror until it was done, and when I left, I almost cried because it was like my childhood, like, coming to life, and I get to do it in such an amazing like moment,” Thompson said of the Panthro costume. “Also, like, for the culture as well because, like, Chadwick was having such a major, major movement at the time.”
Advertisement
Boseman’s episode from April 7, 2018, was the late actor’s only time hosting the late-night show. His hosting duties took place two months after he starred in Black Panther and weeks before the release of Avengers: Infinity War.
During his appearance on the show, Boseman played his Black Panther character T’Challa during a sketch of Black Jeopardy!The hilarious clip has remained extremely popular, garnering over 24 million views to date.
— sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Boseman died at age 43 on Aug. 28, 2020, following a private years-long battle with colon cancer.
One day after his death, SNL paid tribute by sharing a portrait of Boseman, which was originally taken for his episode. The image features the star in a vibrant colored jacket while riding on a black panther.
NBC also announced it would re-air Boseman’s Saturday Night Live episode in honor of the late actor.
on People
Source: "AOL Entertainment"
Source: Entertainment
Published: October 12, 2026 at 07:00PM on Source: RED MAG
#ShowBiz#Sports#Celebrities#Lifestyle