Zooey Deschanel Confirms What We Suspected About Her On-Screen Chemistry With Jake Johnson
By the time Jess (Zooey Deschanel) and Nick (Jake Johnson) — spoiler alert — finally got together in the second season of "New Girl," fans were sweating this ship harder than a polar bear in a shvitz. For all the characters' bickering and respective Season 1 side romances, Jess and Nick were clearly meant for each other, thanks in no small part to the crackling chemistry between the actors. They had the kind of on-screen connection that begs you to believe they must be hooking up in real life.
Obviously, we weren't the only ones to notice, which Deschanel explained on the "New Girl" podcast "Welcome to Our Show" (via People), alongside fellow "New Girl" actors Lamorne Morris and Hannah Simone. Morris asked Deschanel a very provocative question: "Is it true that there was so much chemistry between you and Jake in the beginning that you guys couldn't be in the same shot together?" Well? Is it?!
Zooey Deschanel and Jake Johnson had too much chemistry
As it turns out, Zooey Deschanel explained to her former co-star Lamorne Morris (via People), "I remember them saying that [about her intense chemistry with Jake Johnson]." The Queen of Twee continued, "They were like, 'Listen, you guys have such great chemistry. This is a series, we have to play this out over time, and we don't want to put you guys in the same storylines together.'" Deschanel also recalled wondering, "Isn't that a good thing?" And diplomatically added that she thought everyone had good chemistry in their own ways.
Of course we love the chemistry, but there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. And Deschanel and Jake Johnson are hardly the only actors to have had this problem. Connie Britton and Kyle Chandler, who played a married couple on "Friday Night Lights" had so much chemistry that showrunners worried they'd have an affair and ruin the show. "I was really worried. Connie and Kyle developed a very flirtatious, precocious relationship right off the bat," co-creator Peter Berg once said (via The Week). And who can forget Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's sizzling chemistry on the set of "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" — which really did lead to an off-screen relationship.