Marshawn Lynch, Who Was Once Trolled by Key & Peele for Not Being ‘Media Savvy,’ Transitioned Perfectly to On-Screen Role Post-Retirement

We all remember that Marshawn Lynch wasn’t exactly fond of fielding questions from the media. Everybody loves the classic, “I’m just here so I won’t get fined,” line. But some may forget that the famous comedy sketch show Key & Peele once famously trolled the Seahawks running back for his sarcastic media responses. Which, in retrospect, is funny and ironic given that he’s now a member of the media and also an actor.

In case you’ve never seen the clip, we’ve included it down below. It’s a hilarious skit where Keegan-Michael Key plays Richard Sherman, and Jordan Peele takes on the role of Lynch. Key introduces Peele and says he’s ready to give real answers to the media. But after Peele gives a short response — just like Lynch famously did — Key pushes him to speak in full sentences.

So Peele, playing Lynch, delivers a funny, thoughtful speech about something that has nothing to do with football.

“I just think that the producers of Into The Woods did themselves a disservice by not including the narrator from the original musical theater production,” Peele says.

“Boom. As in legion of,” Key hilariously adds. 

It’s an absolutely hilarious skit that perfectly and playfully trolled Lynch for his short, dry, and deliberately vague responses to the media. He was famous for it too, and the comedy duo nailed the impression. But the joke’s on them, because Lynch has proven them both wrong in his post-NFL career.

Lynch’s transition to media

Perhaps the funniest thing about Lynch’s treatment of the media during his career is that he transitioned seamlessly after retirement into doing more media. He has a YouTube channel where he hosts a podcast, and he also acts in commercials, as well as in films and shows.

During his playing career, Lynch made a cameo appearance in 2 episodes of the famous fantasy football show The League. He also played himself in an episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Lynch has also acted as characters not played by himself.

In Westworld, Lynch was in three episodes and played the character Giggles. And he has an upcoming role in the hit show Euphoria, where he will appear in 8 episodes. 

So, the former running back has shown that he’s come a long way since being a media troll. Now, Lynch is somewhat of a star in Hollywood, and it’ll be fun to track his acting career as he continues to grow.