Zooey Deschanel Recalls New Girl Cast Fighting to Get Lamorne Morris

Zooey Deschanel recently revealed that she and her New Girl castmates had to lobby executives to secure Lamorne Morris for the Fox comedy, according to Deadline. The actor shared the story during an appearance on the Zach Sang Show, recalling a time when Morris was not a lock for the role that would define his career.

Deschanel said the fight began after Morris initially auditioned for the part of Coach, which ultimately went to Damon Wayans Jr. When the character of Winston Bishop—a former basketball player and childhood friend of Nick Miller—was created, Deschanel believed they already had their actor.

How did the cast campaign for him?

After reading with "so many" guys for the role of Winston, Deschanel pushed for Morris. "What about Lamorne? That guy is so good," she recalled saying. Her co-stars Jake Johnson and Max Greenfield, who had met Morris during the original audition process, agreed.

Despite the cast's enthusiasm, there was hesitation from others. Deschanel noted that Morris was the one that "everybody was like, oh, I don't know." In response, the ensemble launched a coordinated effort. "We kind of did this thing where I wrote to the heads of the studio and the network," Deschanel said. "Everyone was writing to somebody different."

She added, "I was like, I can't see anyone else playing this part." Their advocacy worked, and Morris joined the show as Winston Bishop. In 2024, Morris won a Primetime Emmy Award for his role on Fargo.

New Girl, created by Elizabeth Meriwether, aired on Fox from 2011 to 2018 and is available to stream on Hulu and Peacock Premium as of July 2026.