Keke Palmer was already a star when she bounded into Nope, Jordan Peele’s horror sci-fi epic about extraterrestrial life touching down to Earth. But the actor—who’s been a household name since she was 11 years old and who appears on our 2023 Hollywood cover—has seen her career reach new heights in the last year thanks to the blockbuster’s global reach. Here, Palmer (who also sings, hosts a podcast, and runs a media company) talks about a year that surprised even her.
Vanity Fair: Where in the world are you right now?
Keke Palmer: I’m in New York. I live here and in Los Angeles. I kept getting work in LA, so I ended up staying there, but I always wanted to come back to New York.
You’ve had so many chapters of your career in New York, like cohosting Good Morning America.
I loved the GMA chapter!
You also, speaking of television, hosted Saturday Night Live, where you debuted your baby bump.
I knew it was going to be a thing to try and hide it—people were already commenting on it. I didn’t really know how to address it. It just felt like it was never the right time, and having a child is so private. But I felt like I should probably let people know. You need a certain level of physicality to do SNL. It was so much fun to say it during my monologue. That’s something my kid can have forever.
It’s a legendary debut for your child!
I’m so happy for my child! [Laughs.] Pregnancy is a road. I remember my doctor saying, “Pregnancy isn’t a disease. It’s a natural thing! You don’t have to feel like you’re walking on eggshells.” I honestly feel like the same old me [at] six months along. I really expected something so dramatic. But I’m just pregnant. I have something that’s moving around in there every now and then. That part is creepy sometimes. [Laughs.]
How has your partner, Darius, been through it?
Oh, man, I’ve had unbelievable support. It’s the first scenario for both of us and it’s been an incredibly fun ride. I have a very lonely career, and also a very overwhelming career. To do SNL, for instance, is extremely amazing, but also tough for a multitude of reasons—what it means in terms of your career, how grueling the schedule is. You have to get really focused and the people around you have to be prepared for whatever it does to you. I felt the support of my partner during that in a way that’s not anything I have had before. Ever since I met him, [he’s shown] a selflessness. Making sure that I’m not alone, making sure I have support. I think that’s all you can ask from anyone. And I’ve only ever really had that kind of support from my family—and it’s funny, because now we are family.
That’s beautiful. This year has been amazing for you professionally as well. Nope is a phenomenon. Has this experience changed you, or changed how people look at you?
I definitely think it’s changed how people look at me. People don’t know what you’re capable of until they see what you’re capable of. I’ve changed and I’ve evolved and I’ve grown as a performer, from the 20 years I’ve been doing it. Getting new opportunities on even wider scales has made me an even stronger version of myself.
You also launched your media company, KeyTV and your podcast, Baby, This Is Keke Palmer. In terms of your career, how far ahead do you try to strategize?
I wish I could say that I strategized insanely. I do strategize, but the maximum would be like a month in advance. Maybe a couple months in advance. There’s too many things that can come in and shake shit up. So I’m not over strategizing to that damn degree because then I’m not even able to be focused on the present.
I found out I was doing SNL three weeks before I was doing it. I’m not thinking [what comes] about after SNL, because I need to focus on getting up to it. So I don’t overstrategize past the point. Anything that’s happened to my life, especially how it’s happened this year, it was ordained by forces beyond me. I give it up to God, I give it up to the universe because some of these things I could not have written, you know what I mean? I’m not that good of an author. If you would’ve told me I was gonna be pregnant next year last year, I would’ve been like, Really? I would’ve been totally surprised. I was happy, but I never would have planned it.
Everyone on Twitter decided they’re the aunties and uncles of your baby. There’s been so much love pouring out.
Yes! That gives me life. [Laughs.] It’s so sweet because I’ve been performing for so many years, so for people to feel that way? It’s huge. It gave me so much joy to see them celebrating with me.
One of the reasons people connect with you is the shows and the films. Then there’s the candidness on social media and your podcast. You talk about your struggles, your flaws, your day-to-day thoughts, and so many people are watching and listening. Does that feel like a burden? A privilege? Or both?
It feels like both. Thank God if I ever say anything profound, but I’m definitely not always going to say anything profound. And when everybody looks at what you say as a statement, that can be a little bit [intense]. I don’t want to disappoint you and, or to give the wrong thing attention. So yeah, it can definitely be a burden because I care about getting it right. I care about people and I care about the fact that so many people look up to me. To me it does feel like a responsibility and one that I don’t take lightly.
Who are your heroes in the business?
One hundred percent Tyler Perry. I love Tyler Perry so much. I just feel like Tyler Perry is doing something that literally has never been done the way. He is actually showing and trudging a path of ownership for Black creators. Whenever someone criticizes him, it pisses me off so bad because it’s like, y’all only doing that because we have such few people at that level. You’re expecting him to be everybody that you want in one. But he has a particular art, style, and vision that he wanna create. That man is doing good at that and he’s successful at that. You want somebody else? We got Jordan Peele, we got Donald Glover, we got Issa Rae. We got folks. It’s like, we have options.
And I love and respect Tyler for doing his thing and doing the one thing that’s the hardest for white, Black, male, female, anybody to do, which is to own, produce, and distribute your own stuff. That is the biggest note that I think everybody needed to take, because that is true freedom. It really is, as a creator. He’s employing young people, he’s employing people of color, he’s building something. And that, to me, is the North Star…. I want people to understand that a real position of power is ownership. It’s working to not have to sell. That’s ultimately what I would like to do. I would love to create something that can last.
This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.
