Although Coach appeared in New Girl’s pilot, he was far from a mainstay on the beloved sitcom.
New Girl followed the misadventures of Zooey Deschanel’s Jess Day, a quirky young woman who could perhaps best be described by the show’s tagline: "Adorkable."
Also part of the cast are the high-strung Schmidt, aimless bartender Nick, and delightfully strange Winston. Jess' model pal Cece rounds out the core crew.
Why Did New Girl’s Coach Keep Disappearing?
In the 2011 pilot episode of New Girl, Jess moves into a loft apartment with three men, Nick, Schmidt, and Coach. But by the show’s second installment, Coach (Damon Wayans Jr.) was gone, supplanted by Lamorne Morris’ Winston Bishop.
So, why did this change-up occur? Around the same time that New Girl premiered, another comedy series, Happy Endings on ABC was heading into its second season.
Wayans was committed to Happy Endings as Brad Williams and was only cast on New Girl because the former was not expected to get renewed. So when Happy Endings did indeed get picked up for Season 2, Wayans was recalled.
On the matter, New Girl creator and executive producer Elizabeth Meriwether spoke about the "transient" nature of people in their twenties to TV Guide:
"It felt thematically that it made sense to have people move in and out of the apartment. In your 20s, things are transient anyway. You're surfing Craigslist for a new roommate. It kind of worked to have Damon be subletting and then move out. And that freed us up to focus on moving forward, as opposed to going back and creating everything. That would have been a tough way to start."
However, Happy Endings, ironically, did not live up to its name and was axed after three seasons. Thus, Damon Wayans Jr. was able to return to New Girl towards the end of Season 3 as a special guest star. He was named a series regular for New Girl’s fourth year.
And despite the fact that, as a relative newcomer, Coach really meshed with the rest of the cast, who were already well-established in their roles, Wayans again left the show. The reason being that is that his New Girl contract was only for a year and when it was up, he decided not to renew it (via Entertainment Weekly).
Coach was written out of the series, having found love with Meaghan Rath‘s May. The character continued to make sporadic guest appearances from then until New Girl’s final season in 2018, but he did not show up in the series finale.
Any Chance of a New Girl Revival?
Ever since New Girl came to a close in 2018, and particularly since the sitcom emerged as a COVID-era favorite, fans have wondered if the gang could ever reunite for more episodes.
It seems like every press tour that includes a New Girl cast member comes around, interviewers pose questions about a reunion.
In a recent issue of People, Schmidt actor Max Greenfield set the record straight, remarking that it all comes down to the whims and ideas of Elizabeth Meriwether:
“We get asked so many questions about the show and 'What about a reunion?' And none of it is up to us. It's so much about Liz Meriwether who created the show and what she would do differently and how she would direct the show and if she would want to do a reunion. So I think it's her decision and how she would want to move forward.”
Jake Johnson and Lamorne Morris were quick to chime in in agreement, adding “I think Liz is very funny and I think if she did bring it back, it would be great.” and “Yeah, she'd have a smart take on it,” respectively.
All seven seasons of New Girl can be streamed on Hulu.
