New Girl saw its lead character, Jess, leave for a couple of episodes in season 5, with Megan Fox's Reagan filling in for her. Here's why.
Jess Day was the lead character in New Girl, but she left for a while in season 5 – here’s why. Created by Elizabeth Meriwether, New Girl made its debut in 2011 and came to an end in 2018 after seven seasons. New Girl stood out for its tone, sense of humor, and the performances of its main cast (particularly Max Greenfield and Jake Johnson), which immediately won critics and audiences over.
New Girl followed Jess Day (Zooey Deschanel), a bubbly, young teacher who, after finding out that her boyfriend was cheating on her, moved into a loft with three complete strangers: Nick Miller (Johnson), Schmidt (Greenfield), and Coach (Damon Wayans Jr.), who was quickly replaced by Winston (Lamorne Morris), though he came back later on. Aside from that, the main cast was the same throughout the whole series – except in season 5, when Jess left for a couple of episodes.
In the third episode of New Girl Season 5, “Jury Duty,” Jess leaves her loftmates after being summoned for jury duty. As it was a high-profile case, the jury had to be sequestered at a nearby hotel for a month. Her absence brings in a new leading lady, Reagan Lucas (Megan Fox), a pharmaceutical sales representative whose travels result in her staying in LA, specifically in the group's apartment. While she stays at the loft, she discards her mysterious persona, develops friendships with the gang, and becomes Nick's new love interest as well. Although Jess' departure turns out to only be for six episodes and Reagan also exits New Girl, it still seems unusual for the show's star to leave mid-season. As it turns out, it is Zooey Deschanel who needed a break at the time.
Deschanel was heavily pregnant in the first few episodes of New Girl season 5. The show proceeded to production immediately after finishing season 4 in order to maximize her presence before she went on maternity leave. Even though the costume department did what they could to dissimulate her pregnancy, she still had to go on leave after giving birth to her daughter in July 2015. Initially, showrunner Elizabeth Meriwether considered a different storyline to cover for Deschanel's absence, which involved her moving in back to Oregon and staying with her family. However, dropping everything to spend time with her family does not seem plausible for Jess' character, as she is portrayed as often calling and emailing with her parents.
Although it was initially weird not having Jess around, the writers of New Girl handled Deschanel’s absence quite well by bringing Reagan, who was more than just a replacement or fill-in as she played an active part in the storylines of Nick and Jess, which allowed her to come back in season 6. Ultimately, Jess’ absence in season 5 also helped her relationship with Nick and made it possible for them to get back together for good by the end of season 6.
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