Jack Black Took Maya Rudolph to Her First Groundlings Show

Photo: Jon Kopaloff/WireImage

Jack Black is a professional at playing teachers. The most obvious one is Dewey Finn in School of Rock, but by, like, the third Kung Fu Panda Po has become a master of kung fu and teaches a whole village of pandas how to kick ass. Black knows how to be a nurturing and thoughtful instructor— breaking out into songs probably helps calm any nerves. So it’s no surprise when Maya Rudolph shared on The Drew Barrymore Show that Black introduced her to improv when they were in high school and encouraged her to say, “Yes and.” “He was 2 years older than me, and he transferred in the 10th grade, and I was in 8th,” Rudolph explained. “My drama teacher put us together, and he was my improv coach for an improv competition we did, and he got me into the improv class, and he took me to my first Groundlings show, which is where I ended up.” He also taught her to drive stick shift, but Rudolph became a professional actor, not driver. Maybe in a different timeline.