'New Girl' creator Liz Meriwether talks about life after Nick and Jess' big moment
Despite fireworks, the pair are 'definitely not ready to be a couple'
"New Girl"
Credit: Fox
Are you a fan of New Girl?
Sign up to get the latest updates instantly.
“New Girl” fans knew it had to happen sooner or later, but this week Jess (Zooey Deschanel) and Nick (Jake Johnson) finally kissed. But what happens now that the friend barrier has been crossed? Show creator Liz Meriwether talked to journalists in a conference call yesterday to discuss the future of the new “Ross and Rachel” and why Nick and Jess, despite the kiss, “are definitely not ready to be a couple.”
Though fans may have been happy to see Jess and Nick give in to their natural attraction, don’t expect happiness and bliss. Don’t forget; Jess is involved with another man. “Next’s week episode is obviously dealing with the fact that Jess is dating Sam (David Walton).”
Even if Jess does toss over Sam (which is by no means a given), she won’t be running into Nick’s arms, either. “They are definitely not ready to be a couple. I think they’re really sort of struggling with their feelings for each other. I think this came out of the blue and surprised both of them and I think they’re like struggling to deal with if they want to be a couple and how each one of them feels…. [the kiss] doesn’t solve a lot of the problems that they have of just, like, Nick never showering and Jess is like effervescence and optimism in the face of Nick’s like hatred of the world and people.”
The action next week picks up where the kiss left off, and it’s hardly fireworks – at least, not of the romantic kid. “It just obviously rocks Jess’s world and Nick starts freaking out about what he’s done and they both are just grappling with how they continue as friends the way they were.”
Of course, the kiss also changes the dynamic among all of the roommates, not just Jess and Nick. “That’s also a big part of the episode after—not next week, but the week after is sort of a big, like, the loft just dealing with all of it. Schmidt digs up a ‘no nail’ oath that they all took when she moved into the loft where they all agreed not to nail her… Obviously Jess is mad about it and Schmidt is just like dealing with the fact that the loft dynamics have changed in his view.”
If this kiss seems unexpected, it was to the show’s writers as well. “The original draft of last night’s episode didn’t have them kissing and then we, you know, it was a really good script and we went to table as a draft of the script without them kissing and then we just all sort of looked at each other and felt like it sort of felt right. It also felt like if we didn’t have them kiss, it was kind of like pulling our punches.”
If the big moment on “New Girl” reminds you of a certain ‘90s sitcom, Meriwether doesn’t mind at all. “I love Ross and Rachel and obviously I still remember when he showed up at the coffee house in the rain or something and like she opened the door and they kissed. I remember that it was like branded into my brain. If they’d had DVR then I would have watched that seven million times over and over again.”
The kiss between Jess and Nick wasn’t the only one in this week’s episode, though. Brenda Song became a love interest for Lamorne Morris, who plays Winston. “We had such a great time with her on the show and she is definitely sticking around and she is in not next week’s episode but the episode after.” Also look for Steve Howey (“Shameless”) in a future episode. “He’s hilariously funny on the show and he plays a football player who Winston is trying to basically become best friends with and Jess is also interested in.”
Liane Bonin Starr is an author, screenwriter and former writer for EW.com. Her byline has appeared in the Los Angeles Times, Variety and a lot of other places. Her last book was called "a scandalously catty, guilty pleasure" by Jane magazine. Expect the same from Starr Raving.
Trending Now on HitFix Boards
| Topic | Started By | Latest Post | Replies |
|---|---|---|---|
| sepinwall |
3 days ago
|
2
|
|
| sepinwall |
13 days ago
|
1
|
|
| Discuss Scripted Dramas on HitFix Message Boards » | |||
News From Our Partners
-
Justin Bieber's 'Baby' Is Highest-Certified Single in History, But His Monkey Is No Longer His
Son Ho Young's Girlfriend Found Dead
Listen to The-Dream Collaborate With Beyonce on 'Turnt'
-
Total Recall: Bradley Cooper's Best Movies
Parental Guidance: Epic and Beautiful Creatures
Comic Book Movies You Can Watch Online
-
Hear This: You don’t have to know the words to have fun with this Stone Temple Pilots single
Watch This: Ronin is a triumph of crime-flick economy
Cannes Film Festival: Cannes, Day Seven: J.C. Chandor makes good, Nicolas Winding Refn goes bad, and Claire Denis gets ugly
-
Charlotte Robinson: Somer Bingham Talks LGBT Issues and Life After The Real L Word (AUDIO)
PHOTOS: Has Ellen Had Enough Of LA?
Jennifer Aniston On 'Friends' Reunion: 'We All Miss Working Together'
-
'Metallica Through the Never' Trailer: Angry Mobs and "Master of Puppets"
'Timecop' Being Remade, As All Movies Eventually Must
'We're The Millers' Red Band NSFW Trailer: Jennifer Aniston and Jason Sudeikis Smuggle Drugs
-
What to Watch Tonight: The Season Finales of SVU, The Middle, Modern Family, Chicago Fire, Nashville, and Criminal Minds
The Critics Choice Awards Nominations Choose Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad
The Weirdest, Grossest, Bestest Moments from Netflix's Hemlock Grove, in Pictures and GIFs
-
The Telefile - Critics' Choice Television Awards 2013: Nominees Announced
The Telefile - TV on DVD: Tuesday, May 21, 2013
The Telefile - Veep: The Episode's Best Insults
-
'The World's End' Trailer: Pints, Pals, and Killer Robots!
Francis Ford Coppola Directing New Italian-American Saga
'Don Jon' Trailer: Joseph-Gordon Levitt and Scarlett Johansson Go Jersey
Latest Posts
-
In the season ender, Deacon and Rayna face a nightmareThursday, May 23, 2013
-
The Poison singer gushes over the open road and family bondingWednesday, May 22, 2013
-
The Guam resident may be too large to have weight loss surgeryWednesday, May 22, 2013
-
'The Haunting Of...' comes back for season two, tooWednesday, May 22, 2013
Recent Activity on Facebook
Most Popular on Facebook
Top Stories From Around the Web
Comments
Option 1
Comment instantly as a guest GuestOption 2
Option 3
Login or create a HitFix account Login SignupGRubi
January 31, 2013 at 8:10PM EST Reply to CommentWow. Somebody needs to cut back on the amount of "likes" they use when speaking. It makes her seem like a huge ditz, which really conflicts with the excellent writing on New Girl.
January 31, 2013 at 11:34PM ESTGRubi Well played. Just out of curiosity, were the "likes" as noticeable and irritating to hear as they were to read?
February 1, 2013 at 12:18AM EST
February 1, 2013 at 12:23AM ESTIntellectual Ninja
January 31, 2013 at 10:07PM EST Reply to CommentWow... someone who has been given gobs of money to create a TV Show as fantastic as New Girl can't get through ONE SENTENCE without saying "like" at least twice?
We are a nation of barely literate morons.
Mark Twain is like, literally rolling over in his like, grave and stuff.
January 31, 2013 at 11:34PM ESTJessica Knight
February 24, 2013 at 9:00PM EST Reply to CommentFriends was a television show that defined an era. It had such a HUGE cultural impact and did you know it even affected linguistics? I love New Girl, and I think the writing is excellent and I've watched the Jess and Nick kiss far too many times that I would like to admit. However I think it is a little early to compare the show to Friends. Very few television shows can be compared to Friends. After about 5 season of New Girl, perhaps one can make that comparison, but it is much too early for that. Friends was and will always be the most loved show on television.