Don't Worry, Kel Is Definitely Still Alive

Kenan Thompson may be a Saturday Night Live star now, but there was a time when you would rarely hear his name without also mentioning another actor, his Nickelodeon TV show co-star Kel Mitchell. The dynamic duo joined forces on Nickelodeon's kid-friendly sketch comedy show All That, which led to their very own scripted series Kenan & Kel . On the show, Kenan was the "serious" one (okay, okay — the less crazy one), while Kel was the orange soda-loving wildcard guaranteed to cause trouble for his pal. Kel is probably the only reason why I begged my parents to buy me orange soda as a kid, but I credit him with more than just a series of cavities — he was a true comedy talent who could make any room explode with laughter with his ridiculous antics.

So where is this comedian today? First thing's first: He's very much alive. According to The Atlantic, Mitchell was the victim of a celebrity death hoax in 2006, which no doubt made '90s kids everywhere cry as they wrote their feelings down in their Lisa Frank diaries. But don't worry — Mitchell is definitely not dead. In fact, he hasn't even left the industry. Since ending his run on All That in 1999 and Kenan & Kel in 2000, Mitchell has appeared on television series and in films. He had a six-episode arc on sitcom One on One, a role in the DVD film Like Mike 2, and a part in the TV movie Polly and Marie. He acted alongside Danny Glover in the film Honeydrippers and starred as a ladies man in the 2009 film See Dick Run. In 2012 he voiced Dutch Gordy on the animated series Motorcity.

Mitchell may have moved into more adult roles, but he hasn't forgotten his roots on tween television. The actor has made guest appearances on several TV shows, including one that seems to emulate the show that made Mitchell famous. Dan Schneider, the creator of Kenan & Kel, also created recently cancelled Nick show Sam & Cat , which starred Jenette McCurdy and Ariana Grande. Mitchell reunited with Schneider to guest star on the sitcom as "Peezy B," a character that Mitchell described to The Atlantic as being a mix of Kanye West and P. Diddy. If you can stomach Grande's breathy Cat voice, check out the clip below.

And let's not forget the "on set challenge" Mitchell did after he was done filming. (Spoiler alert: It involves a lot of orange soda.)

That wasn't the only kids' TV show that Mitchell guest starred on. The actor also made his way to the Nickelodeon show Liv and Maddie (what is with these two-name show?!) and The Thundermans. Most recently, Mitchell starred on Nicktoons series Wild Grinders, a show loosely based on skateboarder Rob Dyrdek's life, where he played an "intelligent hipster."

Now the big question: Are Kenan and Kel still buds? Sadly, these two don't appear to be as close as they used to be — according to a 2012 interview with TMZ, Kel said that there would probably never be a Kenan & Kel reunion because Kenan would much rather stay a solo act. But Kel was proven wrong, as the two joined forces on stage at the Kids' Choice Awards in 2014 to honor Kenan & Kel creator Schneider. According to an interview with Madame Noire in March 2014, they haven't spoken in a while, but Kel insists he still has a lot of love for Kenan — and that's good enough for me.

Images: Nickelodeon; Giphy (2)