‘Kenny vs. Spenny’: Iconic Canadian frenemies prove some things never change | 24CA News
While their present has been off the air for greater than a decade, Kenny Hotz and Spencer Rice are, for probably the most half, as much as their usual antics.
The stars of the provocative and, at instances, wildly offensive Canadian tv hit Kenny vs. Spenny admit that whereas the present hasn’t aged significantly properly, they’re nonetheless enjoying the identical previous schtick — Hotz continues to mercilessly mock and humiliate Rice for laughs, whereas Rice endures the dressing down for a paycheque.
For those that want a refresher, Kenny vs. Spenny centred across the pair, who had been residing as roommates in Toronto on the time. They would problem one another to absurd and ridiculous competitions of the need. Whoever misplaced was subjected to mean-spirited humiliation as punishment.
Since the sequence wrapped in 2010, the comedic duo has been travelling off-and-on, bringing their dwell stage reveals to audiences throughout North America. Now, they’re hitting the highway on the East Coast of Canada with a dwell stand-up comedy particular to have fun the Twentieth anniversary of the present.
Global News sat down with the pair to debate what followers can count on at a dwell present, how their comedy has modified through the years, the legacy of Kenny vs. Spenny and why they contemplate themselves to be “uncancellable.”
(You can watch a video of the interview, above, however here’s a snippet of the dialog.)
Global News: What does a dwell present seem like? How does it differ from what you guys did on the present?
Rice: Everyone desires us to compete however that may not work with out the bells and whistles of a tv manufacturing workforce. But it’s a really private present, as we’ve recognized one another ceaselessly — our fathers had been associates — and (Hotz) is aware of the whole lot about me, sadly, and I do know the whole lot about him. And it’s actually, essentially, simply me making an attempt to outlive in a really hostile setting.
I don’t just like the followers, they don’t like me, they love Kenny — in order that’s what I cope with.
Hotz: I type of disagree with the aggressive side. I believe we’re each instinctually competing to be extra liked. Maybe not Spencer, a lot, as a result of I completely overpower him and push his buttons, however the present is about you spending an evening with us as if we had been spending an evening collectively in your basement.
We mainly attempt to do the whole lot in our energy to make the viewers giggle. I throw Spencer below the bus, I make him indignant, the viewers laughs and the extra the viewers laughs, the angrier he will get with them. My job is to make the viewers hate Spencer as a lot as he hates them and as soon as that occurs, it escalates into one thing extraordinarily distinctive for a dwell comedy present.
We have a really distinctive demographic and cult-ish group of followers who grew up with us. When we began comedy in Canada, the comedy was principally politics based mostly and there wasn’t quite a lot of comedy exterior that.
Rice: We don’t do (former Ontario premier) Dalton McGuinty jokes, is what Kenny’s making an attempt to say.
Lots of people watched the present after I was in a section of my life the place I used to be making an attempt to do good — making an attempt to avoid wasting the world, making an attempt to be an excellent individual and use our platform correctly.
But when the dwell present got here round, Kenny, fairly amazingly together with his reminiscence, remembers earlier than the tv present, after I wasn’t such an excellent man — I used to be truly a horrible individual. So, he makes use of these tales to rile me up, so the viewers will get to see a facet of me that by no means made the present.
Hotz: I attempt to expose and eviscerate him on stage as being a monster, attempt to get him cancelled, attempt to use the #MeToo motion to assist destroy him. But for this present, the Twentieth-anniversary present, I’ve systematically gone into drives and previous footage and pulled out the stuff I, frankly, can’t even imagine they’re letting us present. It’s very, very abrasive content material that didn’t even clear the broadcasters on the time of the tv present. It’s insanely graphic and controversial.
Rice: Without my session, he’s picked clips that make me look significantly dangerous, however the humorous factor is that he’s chosen clips of himself that make him look dangerous. It’s a mish-mash of self-deprecation and male ego on full show.
GN: You can look again on the tv footage and see why broadcasters and streaming companies would now be hesitant to syndicate the previous episodes. It’s so wildly inappropriate for immediately’s requirements, however it wasn’t actually like that on the time it aired.
Rice: The content material that’s not appreciated anymore however it was on the time — it’s irritating for me, as a result of Kenny’s sense of humour is a shock sense of humour which suggests he has to say issues and needs to say issues which might be politically incorrect. But I’ve recognized Kenny my complete life and he’s not homophobic, he’s not racist, he’s none of these issues that individuals assume he’s from seeing his character on the present.
Hotz: Of course I’m not! My greatest buddy is!
Rice: Yeah, yeah. Shut up, Kenny. But, yeah, I’ve all the time requested myself, “What should we do?” Do we clear up the act? But, no. We don’t. We do what we’ve all the time performed, understanding in our hearts that we’re good individuals.
Hotz: We proceed to do the dwell present, we proceed coming again, as a result of we’ve got a rabid group of worldwide followers that received’t let the present die. We’ve tried to let it die.
People have to understand the present began at a time that the web was simply being born, it was the inception of social media. I imply, I began Kenny vs. Spenny on MyHouse. Our studio claims that our present was one of many forefounders of YouTube-style comedy the place you prank your mates and screw together with your people.
We had been among the first to reveal the fragility of the male ego, to reveal simply how silly males are.
Rice: And we’re scorching.
Hotz: Yes, we had been highly regarded. I appeared like George Clooney, now I seem like George Clooney ready for a kidney. Spencer appears to be like like Slash married Salad Fingers.
Rice: The dynamic you see between us within the present and, now, within the dwell present, could be very a lot how we’re in actual life.
Hotz: In actuality, the competitions didn’t matter as a lot as who we had been as people and our dynamic. The present actually juxtaposed completely satisfied vs. sad, or “I care” vs. “I don’t care” — Spenny cared, I didn’t — and it’s a present that glorified a cheater in a rustic the place we’re all so variety and ethical. Everyone’s lived vicariously by us as a result of we’re simply so sick of being well mannered.
GN: What are you wanting ahead to on the East Coast?
Hotz: Getting away from our households.
Rice: *making a claw gesture with each palms* Lobster.
Seriously, although, I’m not going to kiss a fish, it doesn’t matter what anyone says.
Hotz: Your spouse’s not coming?
Rice: Shut up, Kenny.
Hotz: I drove on the market as soon as to attain some hash and now I’ve been going there for a lot of, a few years. I find it irresistible on the market.
Fans can catch Rice and Hotz’s present, now on tour, within the following areas:
April 27: Summerside, P.E.I., on the Harbourfront Theatre
April 28: Fredericton, N.B. on the Fredericton Playhouse
April 29: Moncton, N.B. on the Tide & Boar
April 30: Saint John, N.B. on the Imperial Theatre
May 10: Halifax, N.S., on the Spatz Theatre
May 11: Truro, N.S., on the MacDonald Room
May 12: St. John’s, N.L., on the Holy Heart Theatre
May 13: Corner Brook, N.L., at Marble Mountain Resort
Full episodes of Kenny vs. Spenny can be found on YouTube.
