Catch Up With the 'New Girl' Cast: Where Are They Now?

The roommates of apartment 4D, who were more of a dysfunctional family than anything else, made the New Girl cast what it was. Starring Zooey Deschanel as eccentric teacher Jess, New Girl became a major hit sitcom.

When you’re living with roommates, you never know what you can expect, which is exactly what it was like for the boys in apartment 4D. Nick, Schmidt and Winston of the New Girl cast had no idea what they were agreeing to when Jessica Day moved in.

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The loft housed three single guys: the underachieving bartender, Nick, the obsessively clean and inappropriate Schmidt and the cat-loving, former athlete, Winston. After a bad breakup, Jess moves in with the guys, turning their lives upside down while worming her way into their hearts.

Filled with iconic lines like “gave me cookie, got you cookie” and “ALL DAY!,” the show never had a boring episode. The New Girl cast provided plenty of hilarious moments, keeping the audience engaged for seven seasons from 2011 to 2018. In fact, the pilot episode raked in over 10 million viewers, making the sitcom an instant hit.

See what the New Girl cast has been up to since the show’s 2018 ending.

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Zooey Deschanel as Jessica Day: New Girl cast

The over-the-top, quirky, colorful Jessica Day brought a new energy to the former bachelor pad in New Girl. The middle school teacher loves to craft and sing and meddles in everyone else’s business. When her energy is paired with that of the guys, there tend to be many conflicts. But despite all the chaos caused by Jess, Zooey Deschanel made her the hilariously relatable girl we all know and love.

Though Deschanel is known for her roles in film classics like Elf (2003) and (500) Days of Summer (2009), her career has taken a turn since New Girl. The actress and singer has been a part of the musical duo She & Him, alongside M. Ward, since 2006. In the years since the sitcom ended, Deschanel and Ward have released multiple singles and an album, titled Melt Away: A Tribute to Brian Wilson (2022).

Deschanel voiced the character of Bridget in Trolls World Tour (2020) and Trolls Band Together (2023). She also scored the lead in Dreamin’ Wild (2022) and she had a small arc on the AppleTV+ original, Physical (2023).

The actress, alongside New Girl costars Lamorne Morris and Hannah Simone, started up a recap podcast for the sitcom, titled Welcome to Our Show, in 2022. Unfortunately, the podcast came to an unexpected halt in August 2023.

In 2020, Deschanel divorced her second husband, Jacob Pechenik, whom she has two children with. The actress is now engaged to HGTV’s Jonathan Scott.

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Jake Johnson as Nick Miller

Self-proclaimed “unsuccessful adult” Nick Miller brings a lot of the comedy to the series. He hardly thinks about himself, can “fix” anything in the apartment and has “the credit score of a homeless ghost." The wise-cracking character offers a lot of hilarity with his constant quips and laughable laziness.

Since the show’s ending, Jake Johnson has been anything but lazy. In 2018, he starred in the hilarious comedy, Tag, alongside Jeremy Renner, Ed Helms and Jon Hamm. The same year, he voiced Peter Parker in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018), which won dozens of awards, including an Oscar.

Johnson starred in the short-lived Stumptown alongside Cobie Smulders from 2019 to 2020. The series, although renewed for a second season, was canceled due to issues caused by the pandemic. He then did some voice work for the TV series Hoops in 2020.

The actor made his directorial debut on the film Self Reliance (2023), also serving as the movie’s writer. Most recently, Johnson starred in the comedy series, Minx (2023). The New Girl actor reprised his role of Peter Parker in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023) and is working on the upcoming film of the series, Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse.

Johnson is currently married to Erin Payne, and the couple has twin daughters.

Max Greenfield as Winston Schmidt: New Girl cast

Schmidt is by far one of the most outrageously hilarious characters of the series. With his instantaneous witty remarks and compulsive behaviors, there is always something new with his character. Especially when the audience discovers his real name is Winston and was changed to avoid confusion with his other roommate, Winston Bishop.

Max Greenfield quickly stepped into his next sitcom, The Neighborhood, in 2018 after New Girl ended. The series is still airing and is currently in season 6. In 2019, Greenfield reprised his role OF Leo D'Amato in the Veronica Mars reboot and had a small part in the movie, What Men Want (2019).

When the pandemic hit in 2020, Greenfield started to release homeschooling videos with his daughter, Lilly. The videos soon became an almost daily series on the actor’s Instagram. He then voiced Roger the dog in Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite (2020) and had a small part in Promising Young Woman (2020), followed by starring roles in the movies The Valet (2022) and First Time Female Director (2023).

Lamorne Morris as Winston Bishop

The real Winston, Lamorne Morris, brought a different kind of comedy to the New Girl cast. The former athlete turned police officer soon became known as the optimistic and odd roommate. Winston is obsessed with his pet cat, Mr. Furguson, whom he takes weekly selfies with, and he often wears weirdly patterned shirts, like his usual bird shirts.

After the series ended,ended, Morris got small roles on multiple TV series and movies. In 2020, he starred alongside New Girl costar Nasim Pedrad, in Desperados. That same year, Morris could be seen in Bloodshot, Death of a Telemarketer and Eat Wheaties! (2020).

The series Woke came along in 2020, though it was canceled two years later. Morris had small arcs on multiple shows throughout the run of Woke and his other projects, most recently on the series Fargo (2024).

Hannah Simone as Cece Parekh: New Girl cast

Jess Day’s best friend, Cece, adds a fun and flirty element to the New Girl cast. Hannah Simone’s headstrong character, who becomes the on-and-off love interest for Schmidt, is loving and supportive towards Jess, but she also is brutally honest. As a professional model, Cece often dresses much better than her best friend and gives Jess dating advice.

Simone has since had small roles on multiple series, including Single Parents (2018), Hoops (2020) and No Activity (2021). In 2020, she got an arc in the animated series Mira, Royal Detective.

The actress joined New Girl costars Deschanel and Morris on their recap podcast in 2022. Most recently, Simone has been starring on the comedy series Not Dead Yet (2023), alongside Gina Rodriguez. She is currently married to Jesse Giddings and the two have one child together.

Damon Wayans Jr. as Coach

Though the pilot saw Coach (Damon Wayans Jr.) as the third member of the apartment, he left in the second episode for the filming of the TV series Happy Endings. Coach, whose name is really Ernie, got his moniker from his occupation as a gym trainer and always wears a whistle around his neck.

In 2018, Wayans Jr. booked the series Happy Together, but it only lasted one season. In 2020, he starred in the Netflix film Love, Guaranteed. Wayans Jr. then had roles on Supercool (2021) and Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar (2021).

Most recently, the actor has starred in The Harder They Fall (2021) and the Netflix film, Players (2024).

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