It's bittersweet to break it to you kids, but it's been exactly 10 years since the premiere of the beloved sitcom New Girl . Fox
Yup, the first episode of the hit Fox show debuted on Sept. 20, 2011 — which is when we first saw the lovable and wholesome loft dynamic between the quirky Jess and besties Nick, Schmidt, and Winston blossom. Fox
In honor of this jubilant occasion and cause for celebration, here's a list of all of the show's stars then vs. now. Ready? OK. 1, 2, 3, 4, JFK! Fox
Say "FDR." No, seriously, say it.
Jess is, naturally, the first character we meet in the loft. The opening scene of the pilot episode begins with her recounting the story of how and why she needs a new apartment.
Isabella Vosmikova / ©20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett Collection Zooey now — still rocking her culture-shifting bangs. Craig Sjodin / ABC via Getty Images Jake now — looking hot as ever with his full beard. Randy Holmes / ABC via Getty Images After Jess admits she thought the Craigslist ad for the loft was written by a woman because of the use of the words "beige-y" and "sun-soaked," Schmidt flails for his masculinity by taking off his shirt.
Netflix / ©20thCentFox 4. Max now — by all accounts, he's still besties with Jake. Amy Sussman / Getty Images We're first introduced to Winston in the second episode of Season 1, as his character returns from playing pro basketball in Latvia. Things begin on the wrong foot with Jess, who surprises him with breakfast in bed — and a song announcing who she is.
Netflix / ©20thCentFox Lamorne now — seemingly without having aged a day. You may have seen Lamorne in Game Night or in his recent role on the Fox series Call Me Kat. He's also busy with The Proud Family revival.
Arnold Turner / Getty Images for Zeus Networks This particular screencap was taken right after Schmidt takes off his shirt in the opening scene of the pilot and says, "This is LLS, 'Ladies love Schmidt.'" And, just like that, we get introduced to the iconic Douchebag Jar.
Netflix / ©20thCentFox Damon now — just booked and busy in all sorts of ways. Bobby Bank / Getty Images Jess's badass model bestie, Cece is with her through thick and thin (including a boob fight and yellow purse debacle).
Netflix / ©20thCentFox Hannah now — as radiant as when we first saw her in Loft 4D. Sorry, I just have to take a moment to comment on the fact that she's literally glowing! Anyway, Hannah has a lot of projects in the works, including an untitled ABC TV movie . She's currently in pre-production for the comedy movie Welcome to Georgia and is set to star in a rom-com called Lemonade opposite Insecure 's Jay Ellis.
Jean-baptiste Lacroix / AFP via Getty Images Reagan is first introduced after Jess leaves for jury duty in the sixth episode of Season 5. She's openly bi, definitely a girl boss, and absolutely wrong for Nick! (But you love her because, duh, it's Megan Fox.)
Ray Mickshaw / ©20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett Collection 9. Megan now — serving looks at the Met Gala and with her beau, Machine Gun Kelly . Nancy Rivera / GC Images / Getty Images We're first introduced to Aly in the middle of Season 4, in an episode entitled "Shark." Nick and Coach are the first residents of the loft (aside from Winston) to meet her, and their worries about her being "so small" lead to a hilarious scene where Aly (rightfully) kicks their asses.
Netflix / ©20thCentFox Nasim now — looking as gorgeous as ever. You've recently seen Nasim in the 2019 live-action Aladdin , Netflix's Desperados , and TBS sitcom Chad , which she created. Prior to joining New Girl , she was also a regular cast member on Saturday Night Live .
Kevin Mazur / Getty Images for MTV/ViacomCBS Sam is first introduced as a no-strings type of guy in the aptly named Season 2 episode "Katie," where he mistakes Jess for his blind date named Katie. He sticks around for a while, then leaves, and then does the whole thing over in Season 5. Was he right for Jess? Def not, but he was hot and his throat punch of Nick was hilarious — so I'll allow it.
Greg Gayne / © Fox / Courtesy: Everett Collection David now — looking the same as he did nearly 10 years ago, with maybe darker hair. Since his New Girl days, the 42-year-old has been in a handful of projects — including the comedy film Later Days , Bad Moms , and assorted episodes in Grace and Frankie , Parenthood , and more.
Tibrina Hobson / Getty Images for Brain Mapping Foundation This '90s heartthrob needs no introduction! Russell appears fairly early on in the series, in a two-part Season 1 episode called "Fancyman." He's the parent of one of Jess's students and is a more mature and put-together type than what she's used to (ahem, Nick, ahem). After their fling, he disappears for a bit, later popping up at some pretty inconvenient times.
Netflix / ©20thCentFox Dermot now — looking snazzy and sharp at 57. Dia Dipasupil / WireImage / Getty Images 13. Nelson Franklin as Robby McFerrin Introduced in the first episode of Season 2 as Cece's boring beau, he appears on the show occasionally — eventually forming an unlikely friendship with Schmidt. He's brought back for Season 6, where he briefly dates Jess, until — blegh — they're revealed to be third cousins.
Netflix / ©20thCentFox Nelson now — playing all sorts of parts, including a regular stint on Black-ish before the show's finale. As we've established, the New Girl cast has STAYED busy. Nelson has had recurring roles on Veep and Black-ish , and avid watchers of The Office will recognize him from there too. More recently, he had a cameo on the Emmy-winning series Hacks .
Paul Archuleta / FilmMagic / Getty Images Ah yes, the British hottie! We first meet Ryan Geauxinue (pronounced goes-in-you) in Season 4. His appearance is ironic, as Jess instantly becomes infatuated with him just as she's beginning to crack down on teacher romances. While I do not condone ghosting and maltreating your partner, he was hot and fun and cute, so I wish we got to see more of him on the series.
Netflix / ©20thCentFox Julian now — just looking mighty fine, as per usual. As is often pointed out, aside from a three-episode stint in Season 3, Jess's wild sister is never seen or heard from again! Granted, Linda Cardellini is an icon and was probably extremely busy being Linda Cardellini, but it would have been great to see her character incorporated more into the series!
Netflix / ©20thCentFox Linda now — being one half of the iconic duo in Dead to Me , alongside Christina Applegate . To spare you the five-paragraph essay I could write on her résumé, I'll just include Linda's most recent roles as Laura Barton in the MCU and Judy Hale on Dead to Me . Speaking of which, just WHERE exactly is the third season, Linda? When will Netflix allow us to know peace?
Arnold Turner / Getty Images 16. Mary Elizabeth Ellis as Caroline Nick's terrible ex who causes him to short-circuit and spiral without fail each time she's around is introduced right off the bat in the pilot episode. She pops up every now and again, and while she irks me, she helps bring about an important scene in the show — when Nick confesses that he fell in love with Jess the moment she walked through the loft door.
Netflix / ©20thCentFox As mentioned above, Mary has had a longstanding role on the FX comedy series. She's also been in a personal favorite show of mine (which was canceled WAY too early), the Drew Barrymore –starring Santa Clarita Diet .
Leon Bennett / Getty Images Jess's dad is first introduced in the Season 2 Thanksgiving episode, where Jess tries to Parent Trap her divorced parents. At first, Bob doesn't like Nick because he used to be him, which makes him giving Nick his blessing for Jess's proposal in Season 7 all the more heartwarming.
Netflix / ©20thCentFox Rob now — hopefully retired because he has done so much in his career. No, he's not retired, but I hope he's getting his well-deserved rest! I wouldn't even know where to begin with the legendary actor, director, writer, and producer. He's the filmmaking genius behind some of your fave classics — including When Harry Met Sally and The Princess Bride , among countless others.
Getty Images / Getty Images for Equality Now 18. And last but not least, Jamie Lee Curtis as Joan It's hard to believe it, but Joan is somehow even more upbeat and in tune with her emotions than Jess. We meet her in the same Season 2 episode as Bob, the most memorable moment of which is when Nick is forced to flirt with her — only to later become slightly confused about his feelings for Joan.
Ray Mickshaw/©Fox / courtesy Everett Collection Jamie now — getting back to where it all began with the Halloween franchise. The actor, producer, and director is going back to her roots by reprising her role as Laurie Strode in the Halloween franchise sequels — Halloween Kills and Halloween Ends. The former movie will release this October, while the latter is in pre-production.
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