Jordan Peele

Actor-writer Jordan Peele gleefully skewered issues of race and popular culture as a solo performer and in tandem with his frequent partner Keegan-Michael Key on "MADtv" (Fox 1995-2009) and "Key & Peele" (Comedy Central 2012-15). A veteran of the Second City improvisational group, Peele broke into television with "MADtv," which earned him widespread praise for celebrity impersonations and unhinged recurring characters. After netting a 2008 Emmy nomination for writing the comic music video "Sad Fitty Cent," Peele left "MAD" to work on other series before reteaming with Key for their own show. "Key & Peele" was both a critical and audience favorite thanks to the stars' take on racially tinged subjects, including a supremely formal President Barack Obama (played by Peele). The popularity of the series led to additional high-profile opportunities for the stars and underscored both Key and Peele's ascent to the higher echelons of the comedy business. That success led to the duo's first big-screen effort, the action comedy "Keanu" (2016), in which the pair took on a violent street gang over a stolen kitten. In a somewhat unexpected shift of direction, Peele's first high-profile solo gig was the horror film "Get Out" (2017), which he wrote and directed; a racially-charged satirical film in the tradition of "Rosemary's Baby" (1968) and "The Stepford Wives" (1975), "Get Out" was a major critical and commercial success that poised Peele for a career apart from his longtime friend and partner.