New Girl, which ran on Fox from 2011-18, was never one of the biggest shows on TV when it came to ratings, but for seven seasons, it was a dependable series that never really saw a big decline in its creativity. There was no jumping the shark, no exodus of stars (Damon Wayans Jr.would come and go but never stayed gone), no sudden character or setting shifts. While its characters grew, they also stayed the same, making the series welcome comfort food where you could watch these goofballs, who bickered but loved each other, get into all kinds of shenanigans.Zooey Deschanelwas the star coming in, but it quickly became a show where she wasn’t the lead focus. Her supporting cast was so well written, and their chemistry between each other so great, that it became an easy ensemble piece. With how great that chemistry was, it seemed that each of them was preparing for superstardom, but five years after the series ended, Hollywood has somehow betrayed them. While all of them continue to work,none have become the megastars that at least a few should have been destined for.
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Zooey Deschanel Was Already a Star Before ‘New Girl’
Deschanel was already a star, though not a megastar, whenNew Girlbegan. She was great in indie roles like(500) Days of Summer, and she was a phenomenal singer, as she showed in her two piece group,She & Him, withM. Ward, but to the casual movie fan, she was that woman fromElf. That is not a criticism, as Deschanel got to showcase her acting and singing ranges in that film as well. In the 2000s, she had that quirky “girl next door” vibe, a manic pixie dream girl in the making who could easily be typecast if she wasn’t careful.New Girlcould have become that, with its premise of a single woman becoming roommates with men. The show could have just been one romance with one closed-off male character after another,and while there was romance(what sitcom doesn’t involve a character’s love life), it quickly became more than that because Deschanel’s character wasallowedto be more than that. She wasn’t there to be simply a male fantasy, a trope avoided thanks to the series' female creator,Elizabeth Meriwether. Instead, Jess got to be a well-rounded, fully formed character, one who wants love, sure, but one who can hang with the guys, be aloof and funny, and make her own mistakes. She was a person, not a plot device.
Deschanel was set up to be the biggest star of the bunch whenNew Girlended. Instead, she has stepped back from the stoplight and hasn’t done a lot. There’s been commercial work and a new Discovery+ series calledWhat Am I Eating, but little else. While it seems this is by choice, as Deschanel has focused on motherhood and interests outside of acting, it’s a loss for Hollywood. Deschanel showed she could do it all. She was more than the dream girl of(500) Days of Summer. She could be serious, as she was in a major role forM. Night Shyamalan’sThe Happening. She could do comedy, as she did next toJim CarreyinYes Man. She could do voiceover work, like she did withSurf’s Up, Trolls,and a guest role onThe Simpsons. And, as she showed from time to time, she could be a rock star too. If and when Deschanel returns full-time, — as of late,she has joined the cast ofPhysicalfor the upcoming third season— Hollywood will certainly attempt to stick her in mom roles, and while an actress in her 40s should be seen as more than that, she would rule as the mom of some snarky teenager too.
Jake Johnson’s Mainstream Roles Have Him on the Verge of Being a Major Star
Deschanel’sNew Girlco-star,Jake Johnson,killed it as Jessica Day’s love interest, Nick Miller. He may have been the most well-rounded character on the series. Miller was emotionally stunted, but loving. He acted like a dolt, but he also loved to write and eventually found success doing it. He was loud and insecure and overly sensitive, but no matter what, he kept trying. There was the constant will-they-won’t-they stuff with Jess, but their relationship went deeper than that. Whatever mess they were in romantically, they stayed best friends.
Jake Johnson’s acting went deeper too. He could easily do the silly supporting roles for films likeGet Him to the Greekand21 Jump Street, but he could do the lead for a series likeMinxtoo. He has also done more character-related indie fare likeDrinking Buddies. And while he has yet to become the huge star that his talent has the potential for, he has at least been recognized by Hollywood the last few years in some major releases. He was inJurassic WorldandTom Cruise’s version ofThe Mummy, and while the latter was a disaster, he at least got to do something different, playing Cruise’s close friend, before becoming possessed and later a ghost. Nick Miller would have loved that. Perhaps the best thing Johnson has done the last few years was his voice role as the older Peter Parker forSpider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. While his Spider-Man wasn’t the focus of this story’s world, he was superb as a version of Parker we hadn’t seen before. Jake Johnson has had some notable supporting roles, but he’s more than the supporting funny friend in a movie. Jake Johnson should be the star.
Max Greenfield Is Still a Sitcom Star, but He Should Be Even Bigger
The same can be said of hisNew Girlco-star,Max Greenfield. On the series he played Nick’s self-centered and sex-crazed best friend, Schmidt. His character went farther than a sitcom trope though. It was simply a starting point for someone whose uber confidence masked the anxiety underneath. Though he was a womanizer, it was always one woman, Cece (Hannah Simone), who was on his mind. Eventually, he put his womanizing ways aside and settled down with her, without becoming too mature and losing his high energy charm.
Greenfield could have been typecast as that loud, energetic character for the next decade, but he’s pushed back against it. For the past several years he’s been the lead alongsideCedric the Entertainerin the CBS series,The Neighborhood. It’s another sitcom, and not a critical darling, but Greenfield gets to play a nicer character who doesn’t bounce off the walls so much. He’s worthy of more than middling network sitcoms though. Greenfield has shown there is more, from his creepy turn inPromising Young Woman, to especiallyhis co-lead role in the filmHello, My Name Is Doris. There, the tables are turned, and it’s Greenfield as the one being pursued by a much older woman inSally Field. This was Greenfield at his best, showing how he could do everything. He’s always taken whatever role he’s given and excels, exactly what Hollywood needs from someone who should be a megastar.
Hannah Simone Defied Expectations in ‘New Girl’
The character played most against type would be Hannah Simone’s Cece. She is a model and could have easily fallen into something oversexed that focused on her looks and portrayed her for laughs as the “dumb model” stereotype. Instead, she’s the smartest and most level-headed of the group. As Jess' best friend, she’s the one there to talk her down or get her out of trouble. That doesn’t mean that her character is boring, for she gets herself into her own avoidable drama too, but most of it comes with Schmidt. Instead of playing Cece as someone who is above this guy who won’t leave her alone, Cece, while frequently annoyed by his antics, likes him back. Whatever Cece could have been in the beginning as a cookie cutter character was quickly forgotten as the seasons went by.
From a superficial standpoint, Simone may have had the most potential to be a movie star because, well, she looks like one. She could play someone elegant or be a badass superhero. Somehow that hasn’t happened. Surprisingly, she’s had the least amount of mainstream success of anyone fromNew Girl. That hopefully is starting to changewith her new role on CBS’Not Dead Yet, where she gets second billing. A lot of her character of Sam is similar to Cece, for now she’s the calm and level-headed friend to Nell (Gina Rodriguez). There is a small but significant difference in the two roles though. Where Cece was extravagant, Sam is more down to earth and actually a bit of a boring person who becomes more in her friendship with Nell. This role showed that Simone was more than a pretty face. That could be put aside, and she could simply just play an ordinary person. That chameleon effect, to be able to slip into a role and disappear, is exactly what Hollywood casting directors should be looking for.
Lamorne Morris' Acting Range Has Him Positioned for Big Things
And then there’sLamorne Morris, who played Winston Bishop inNew Girl. Going into the series, it seemed like maybe that’s exactly how Winston would be seen, as the guy brought up last. In a cast of mostly white actors, Winston could have become the token Black friend, the problematic trope where race becomes a constant source of the jokes. IfNew Girlhad been made in the 90s, it probably would have went that way, a character played for cheap laughs whose plotlines were less than important leftovers. Instead, his character grows the most over the years in focus. He leaves his dull beginnings as a former basketball player to become the strangest yet most lovable character of all. Later seasons find him becoming a cop and finding love with Aly (Nasim Pedrad).Winston is aloof but incredibly sweet and romantic.
Morris has been in films likeGame NightandJumanji: The Next Level, but his best work sinceNew Girlwas forthe Hulu comedy series,Woke. The comedy took a different look at racism and what it means to be woke to societal issues in our current era. Morris is the lead, but after two seasons, Hulu canceled the series. With Morris' ability to become something so much bigger than a character based on race, while also not forgetting that in other roles, it shows Hollywood that he can play anyone. Lamorne Morris has long displayed that he’s more than what could be the “other guy.” He’s slowly becoming the star.
New Girlhas stayed relevant, a half decade after its end, due to its run on Netflix. While it’s something everyone who acted in it should be proud of and remembered forever for, it shouldn’t be the last thing they’re widely known for. Instead, the gang should be taking over our cinemas and TV screens. Maybe they still will.
