Maya Rudolph says Jack Black played a key role in her early comedy career

Maya Rudolph says Jack Black helped launch her comedy career during their time at Crossroads School in Santa Monica, California, according to Nbc.

The two spoke fondly of each other on Amy Poehler’s podcast Good Hang. Black said in his April 2025 interview that he first met Rudolph when she was in eighth grade, that her improv skill intimidated him and led him to stop doing improv for about a year. Rudolph, in her December Good Hang episode, said she had known him since she was 14, that “he changed my life,” and that he coached her in an improv competition and got her into improv class early.

They also bonded over music and Black brought her to her first Groundlings show, a step Rudolph tied to her later SNL work. Rudolph said she thought about Black while performing her famous SNL National Anthem sketch; when Poehler asked if they ever kissed, Rudolph said, “No! I wanted to,” and joked, “There’s still time.”

Key Topics

Culture, Maya Rudolph, Jack Black, Amy Poehler, Good Hang, Crossroads School