The Ottawa native and member of comedy troupe Kids in the Hall is back in Canada, living and working out of Toronto.
He's dividing his time between writing and starring in TV, film and stage productions.
He's currently getting some of the best reviews of his career for his performance as the obnoxious American showman in Winnipeg director Guy Maddin's surrealistic musical comedy The Saddest Music in the World.
"I'm grateful for everything that's coming my way, especially a movie like The Saddest Music -- but I really wish this had happened for me years ago," says McKinney, who'll turn 42 next month.
He started his career doing standup comedy but didn't reach his comic stride until he teamed up with Bruce McCulloch in 1982.
Their collaboration eventually led to groundbreaking Canadian TV series Kids in the Hall in 1989.
After a successful five-year run on Kids, McKinney moved to New York to work on Saturday Night Live as a writer and performer.
He married Marina Gharabegian, with whom he had a son Christopher in 1996 and a daughter Emma Jane in 2001.
"New York was good to me. I did several plays and films, but I had to rethink my life after 9/11. The day of the terror attacks was my son's first day of school," he explains.
"One of the anthrax scares in New York happened at our postal substation. I knew it was time to come back to Canada."
Last year, McKinney was one of the writers and stars of the hilarious back-stabbing backstage TV comedy Slings and Arrows.
"We've been renewed, so we're working on new scripts. I also did two episodes of another TV series Robson Arms that filmed in Vancouver."
McKinney says even as a child he had "an active imagination -- and it's getting the best possible workout these days."
this is a weblog devoted to comedy troupe kids in the hall. are you a KITH fan? tend to be good at finding things of notifiable content? want to join? drop me an email! (it may take a while, but i'll get to it)