While shows like The Office are thought to include lots of improv, 30 Rock’s humor comes straight from the script, according to Keith Powell. (Although Tina Fey has admitted that a few lines, such as “shark farts,” were indeed ad-libbed.) The actor told Movieline on Wednesday: “Most of it’s pretty scripted. I know that sometimes when we’re beginning or ending a scene, they might keep the camera rolling a little longer just to see if there’s something spontaneous that comes out. But I’d say the show is about 98% completely scripted. There’s not a lot of ad-libbing. It’s very interesting because the writers write it to sound like we’re ad-libbing, but that’s more of a testament to how good they are.” [Movieline]
