What Happened to Kel Mitchell? The Kenan and Kel Revival in 2026

If you grew up anywhere near a TV in the late ’90s, you can probably still hear it: “Who loves orange soda? Kel loves orange soda!” Kel Mitchell was the rubber-faced, motor-mouthed half of Nickelodeon’s first Black teen sitcom, and the cashier who really, really loved a good burger. Then he sort of vanished from the mainstream spotlight. So whatever happened to Kel Mitchell? The short answer: a near-miss health scare, a pulpit, four kids, and one very busy 2026. Let’s catch up.

01Profile

A quick note before we dive in: that middle name, Johari, is Swahili, and Mitchell has said it suits him because it means “jewel.” For a guy whose whole comedic brand was being a lovable goofball, it’s a surprisingly fitting label once you learn the rest of his story.

02The Rise

From Chicago kid to Nickelodeon’s secret weapon

Mitchell got his start in Chicago youth theater before landing a spot on the original cast of Nickelodeon’s sketch-comedy show All That in 1994. He was a kid then, but he had a comedian’s instincts that made him stand out in an ensemble full of talented young performers. The show became a launching pad, and Mitchell’s chemistry with castmate Kenan Thompson was the kind of thing networks pray for and rarely find.

”Kenan & Kel” and a catchphrase for the ages

In 1996, Nickelodeon gave the duo their own sitcom, Kenan & Kel. Mitchell played Kel Kimble, the well-meaning klutz whose love of orange soda became a national catchphrase. The series ran until 2000 and holds a notable place in TV history as one of the network’s signature live-action comedies of the era. For a generation of kids, “Aw, here it goes!” was less a line of dialogue than a rallying cry.

”Good Burger” turns a sketch into a movie

The pair’s biggest screen moment came in 1997 with Good Burger, a feature film spun out of a recurring All That sketch. Mitchell’s Ed — the relentlessly cheerful, gloriously dim-witted fast-food cashier — became one of the most quotable characters in ’90s kids’ cinema. The movie wasn’t a critical darling, but it earned a devoted cult following that, as we’ll see, paid off enormously decades later.

03The Quiet Years

After Kenan & Kel wrapped and the duo went their separate ways, Mitchell’s career cooled in the way a lot of child stars’ careers do. He kept working steadily — voice acting was a big part of it — but he was no longer the face plastered on every Nickelodeon promo. He voiced characters in animated projects, popped up in smaller roles, and for a stretch he was more of a “hey, it’s that guy” presence than a headliner.

There was also a well-documented falling out with Kenan Thompson. The two have since spoken candidly about drifting apart after the show ended — Mitchell discussed the split and their eventual reconciliation in interviews — and they’ve made clear there was no dramatic feud, just two young men whose paths diverged. The reunion, when it came, was warm rather than tense.

1994Joins the original cast of All That on Nickelodeon.
1996Kenan & Kel premieres, with the duo headlining their own sitcom.
1997Good Burger hits theaters and becomes a cult favorite.
2000Kenan & Kel ends; Mitchell shifts toward voice work and smaller roles.
2019Becomes a youth pastor and finishes runner-up on Dancing with the Stars.
2023Reprises Ed in Good Burger 2 on Paramount+ and survives a frightening hospitalization.

A 2019 turn on Dancing with the Stars, where he finished runner-up, helped reintroduce him to a broad audience and reminded everyone that the orange-soda kid had grown up into a genuinely charismatic adult performer.

04Faith Fatherhood and a Health Scare

Here’s the part of Mitchell’s story that tends to surprise people who only remember him goofing around at Good Burger. In 2019, the same year he was cha-cha-ing across the DWTS floor, he became a youth pastor at Spirit Food Christian Center in Winnetka, California. He runs ministry programs there for kids and teens, and according to the church and multiple outlets including Fox News and TODAY, he speaks to young people about faith and chasing their dreams.

Mitchell has been strikingly open about how dark things got before he found that footing. In interviews with outlets like ChurchLeaders, he has spoken about a period of suicidal thoughts and how faith helped pull him through. It’s heavy material, and he tells it not for shock value but as testimony — the kind of thing he now shares with the teenagers he mentors. In 2021 he published a devotional book, Blessed Mode: 90 Days to Level Up Your Faith.

He’s also a father of four. Mitchell married Asia Lee in 2012; together they have a daughter, Wisdom (born 2017), and a son, Honor (born 2020), and he has two older children, Lyric and Allure, from a previous marriage. The family keeps their kids largely out of the public eye, and Mitchell has said in interviews that his children are among his “biggest fans.”

Then came November 2023. While out shopping, Mitchell said the room started spinning and the right side of his body went numb; he couldn’t swallow. He went to the emergency room, failed a mobility test, and underwent a battery of scans. The cause, he later explained, was a bulging disc from an old injury pressing on a nerve and mimicking far scarier symptoms. On Instagram he thanked fans for “the flood of prayers and positive vibes that surrounded me during a genuinely frightening time,” and within days reported he was on the road to recovery.

05What He Is Doing Now

A full-blown “Kenan & Kel” renaissance

If you assumed Kel Mitchell had quietly retired into ministry, 2026 has news for you. The Mitchell–Thompson partnership is in the middle of a genuine revival. It started with Good Burger 2, which dropped on Paramount+ on November 22, 2023, reuniting Ed and Dexter for a new generation. The reception was strong enough to make a bigger relaunch worth betting on.

In January 2026, while guest-hosting Amazon’s sports talk show Good Sports (filling in for Kevin Hart), Mitchell and Thompson announced Kenan & Kel Meet Frankenstein — a horror comedy modeled on the classic Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein. Per Variety and Deadline, the pair will star in and produce, with production slated to begin in summer 2026 and Jonah Feingold writing the script.

Coming back together always feels natural, and this lets us tap into everything people love about our dynamic while trying something totally new. It’s funny, it’s scary, and it’s a great ride. — Kel Mitchell on Good Sports, January 2026

Building out the “Kenan & Kel Universe”

The movie isn’t a one-off. As of June 2026, Mitchell and Thompson have expanded the brand into a full slate. They launched a free-to-play match-3 mobile game called Orange Pop! — featuring their own voice work — available on the App Store and Google Play, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter. A comic-book series, reportedly titled Kenan & Kel Meet Zombies, is in development with Range Comics, and a lifestyle collaboration with designer Sean Wotherspoon has been mentioned for later in the year. For two guys who started in a Nickelodeon sketch, turning their friendship into a multi-platform franchise three decades on is a remarkable second act.

Still the youth pastor, still online

Through all of it, Mitchell remains active in ministry and stays connected to fans through his social channels, where he posts under the handle @iamkelmitchell on both Instagram and X. He’s also leaned into a “hybrid athlete” fitness identity in his bio, a long way from the soda-guzzling Ed — though he’d probably still tell you the burger is good.

06Summary

So, what happened to Kel Mitchell? He grew up. The kid who made a generation laugh became a husband, a father of four, a youth pastor who’s been honest about surviving his lowest moments, and — improbably — a franchise builder enjoying one of the most satisfying comebacks in former-child-star history. The orange soda was just the beginning.

Kel Mitchell in 2026: Quick Facts

Best known for All That, Kenan & Kel, and the Good Burger films, where he played the lovable Ed.
Reunited with Kenan Thompson for Good Burger 2 on Paramount+ in November 2023.
Announced Kenan & Kel Meet Frankenstein in January 2026, with filming set for summer 2026.
The duo also launched the Orange Pop! mobile game and have a comic series in development.
Serves as a youth pastor at Spirit Food Christian Center in California.
Married to Asia Lee since 2012; father of four (Lyric, Allure, Wisdom, Honor).
Recovered from a frightening November 2023 hospitalization caused by a bulging disc.

It’s easy to be cynical about nostalgia-driven reboots, but Mitchell’s revival lands differently. This isn’t a faded star clinging to an old catchphrase — it’s a guy who quietly rebuilt his whole life around faith and family, then got to share the comeback with the friend he started it all with. Aw, here it goes, indeed.