How Zooey Deschanel Really Felt About Working With Taylor Swift In New Girl
Taylor Swift is one of the biggest and most successful musicians of our time. But what makes her so legendary? The most obvious answer is her catchy songs and her incredible voice, which catapulted her to the zenith of fame. As of March 2023, she is embarking on tour for the first time since before the COVID pandemic. The extent of the singer’s popularity was demonstrated in how this tour — dubbed Eras — broke records for sales when it was announced in 2022.
Yet, it’s not just her talents as a musician that makes Swift so beloved among fans. The Shake It Off icon has also ventured into the realm of directing movies. Having previously started out by directing her own music videos out of necessity, she ended up falling in love with the craft and is now taking it fully on board as part of her repertoire.
Swift is also incredibly open about her life and inspirations, which is rare among musicians. She has often spoken up about her struggles with anxiety and body image, which has helped to destigmatize these issues and inspire her fans to be more accepting of themselves and of others. For good measure, the Pennsylvania-born star is also something of a fashion icon.
But it is not just fans who adore Swift, she is a firm favorite in celebrity circles. New Girl star Zooey Deschanel proved an example of this as she swooned over the Fearless singer when she made a cameo in the Fox sitcom New Girl.
Taylor Swift Featured In The Season 2 Finale Of New Girl
The story of New Girl followed Zooey Deschanel as Jess Day, an enthusiastic and youthful teacher who, after discovering her boyfriend’s infidelity, moved in with three strangers she found on the internet. These were portrayed by Jake Johnson as Nick Miller, Max Greenfield as Schmidt and Lamorne Morris as Winston Bishop. The four quickly formed a very strong circle of friendship, which was completed by Jess’ childhood pal Cece (portrayed by Hannah Simone).
Taylor Swift featured in the final episode of the series’ second season, where her character Elaine was in attendance for Cece’s wedding. Cece’s fiancé by arranged marriage was called Shivrang (played by Satya Bhabha), whom Elaine had previously dated.
Elaine disrupted the wedding by professing her love for Shivrang, who then agreed to actually leave with her. Meanwhile, Cecea also eventually confessed her feelings for Schmidt. Swift’s cameo was a very exciting one for fans, although some of the most eagle-eyed pointed out that it created a plot hole in New Girl’s story. The cast and crew were also in awe of their temporary co-star.
Zooey Deschanel Was Impressed By Taylor Swift’s Cameo In New Girl
Although the cast of New Girl are stars in their own right, it is not always that they would have someone the ilk of Taylor Swift working with them on set. It’s not just the music superstar’s stature that impressed Zooey Deschanel when she featured in that one episode. The Winnie the Pooh actress also loved how Swift carried herself on set, and even how she performed her role when the cameras started rolling.
“She’s awesome,” Deschanel told Us Weekly shortly after at a red carpet event for the show in North Hollywood. “She’s super-funny and really smart. Very professional and we loved working with her.”
Swift’s short and sweet appearance in New Girl really got the tongues wagging, but it wasn’t the first or the last time acting. Other credits that she has to her name include Valentine’s Day, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Amsterdam and even SNL.
What Did Other New Girl Crew And Cast Members Say About Taylor Swift’s Cameo?
It was not just Zooey Deschanel who was gushing over Taylor Swift’s presence and performance in New Girl. Executive producer and showrunner Elizabeth Meriwether went full-on fan-girl when talking about the singer to Entertainment Weekly in December 2019. “I’m a huge fan of hers,” she said, revealing that it had been a dream to cast the mega star in the show.
“I was fully geeking out about meeting her,” continued Meriwether. “I didn’t go to meet her right away because I kind of had to compose myself — there’s a 14-year-old girl inside of me!” To her great delight, Swift turned out to be just as much of a fan of the show as they were of her. “She was quoting lines to us from the show. It was a really exciting night,” she added.
As well as Deschanel, Us Weekly also got to speak to her co-star Max Greenfield about Swift’s cameo. “One word: Magic,” he said. “I’m telling you she was magic on the set, magic.” While some might have thought that the choice to have Swift on New Girl was a basic ploy to boost numbers, Meriwether was insistent that it was not just “stunt casting.”
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