# Key & Peele (2012)

> Comedians Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele perform a rapid-fire run of sketches, playing dozens of characters in front of a live studio audience.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/39314

## Facts

- Seasons: 5
- Episodes: 53
- Episode runtime: 20 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: comedy
- Created by: Keegan-Michael Key, Jordan Peele
- Network: Comedy Central
- Cast: Keegan-Michael Key, Jordan Peele, Sarah Baker, Yassir Lester, Paul Walter Hauser, Lloyd Ahlquist, Nicole Parker, Leslie David Baker
- TMDB rating: 8.3/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1981558/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: moderate
- Complexity: simple
- Violence: mild
- Tone: irreverent, playful, brisk, sharp, self-aware

## What critics say

Viewers broadly acclaim the show as a sharp, inventive sketch series whose strength lies in the chemistry and range of its two co-creators.

## Synopsis

Key & Peele (2012-2015) is an American sketch comedy series created by Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele for Comedy Central. Former MADtv performers Key and Peele star as themselves and as a rotating gallery of characters, introducing each episode in front of a live studio audience before launching into pre-taped sketches. The engine of the show is pure transformation: the duo swap wigs, accents, and personas to skewer everyday absurdities, celebrity culture, film parodies, and sharp observations about race and identity. Each episode is made of several self-contained bits, so there is no continuing storyline to follow and viewers can dip in anywhere. Across five seasons and fifty-three episodes, the tone stays brisk, playful, and irreverent, with bursts of biting social satire and warm camaraderie between the two leads. Fans of Chappelle's Show, MADtv, and Saturday Night Live will find the same mix of character-driven sketch work and cultural bite, delivered with a smart, self-aware energy that rewards repeat viewing.

## Shows like Key & Peele

- [The Whitest Kids U' Know (2007)](https://ember.film/tv/9681)
- [The Kids in the Hall (1989)](https://ember.film/tv/1462)
- [A Black Lady Sketch Show (2019)](https://ember.film/tv/77020)
- [MADtv (1995)](https://ember.film/tv/4250)
- [All That (1994)](https://ember.film/tv/3628)
- [The Ben Stiller Show (1992)](https://ember.film/tv/699)
- [Middleditch & Schwartz (2020)](https://ember.film/tv/85781)
- [In Living Color (1990)](https://ember.film/tv/4197)
- [Tel chi el telùn (1999)](https://ember.film/tv/114783)
- [Mr. Show with Bob and David (1995)](https://ember.film/tv/576)

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