Zooey Deschanel is celebrating the 15th anniversary of New Girl by looking back at that period of her life. Spanning seven seasons, New Girl further boosted the fame of its lead actress by telling the story of a teacher who, on the cusp of thirty, ends up sharing a roof with three other guys, each navigating the surprises of adult life. Airing from 2011 to 2018, New Girl is the creation of Elizabeth Meriwether (Furious), and Deschanel has dredged up some memories to celebrate the anniversary, recalling how “crazy” the early days on set felt.
New Girl, Zooey Deschanel reveals that the happiest moments are those she lived at the beginning of the series: the reason
One of Zooey Deschanel’s most important memories about New Girl concerns the very start: according to the actress, the early days were the most precious. Attending the Toronto International Film Festival 2026, Deschanel admitted: “I loved the beginning. I adore the entire New Girl experience, but the beginning… we were shaping it and it was stressful and wild, we worked for an insane number of hours and so on.”
Together with colleagues Jake Johnson, Max Greenfield, Lamorne Morris, Hannah Simone and Damon Wayans Jr, Deschanel has lived moments that she still recalls today: “We managed to catch these little sparks and we were like: ‘Oh, this thing really works for him. This other thing comes off brilliantly. She is superb at it.’ All of these tiny things helped us truly find our characters. It was a lot of fun. I loved being part of the process of shaping the cast and meeting everyone. I mean, that is what I love about show business: it’s really about spotting where those little sparks ignite and seizing them on the fly.”
Jake Johnson also recalled the New Girl experience months ago. Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, he revealed: “It doesn’t feel like yesterday at all. It feels like a long time has passed, but I’m still very close to the whole cast. It’s amazing to think that we’ve known each other for 15 years, but that show was a dream, and the fans were fantastic, so, honestly, being able to do a show like this is their doing. It’s really a blessing.”
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