‘The Mindy Project’ Could Include A ‘Cheers’ Reunion This Season

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Three cheers for the prospect of a ‘Cheers’ revival (sorry, it had to be said)! ‘The Mindy Project’ is blessed with an amazing supporting cast, including Rhea Perlman and Dan Hedaya from the sitcom ‘Cheers’. I caught up with TMP writer Tracey Wigfield to get the scoop on a possible reunion!

Cheers fans rejoiced when Rhea Perlman was cast on The Mindy Project last year as Danny (Chris Messina)’s mom. It was a genius move for so many reasons, one being that we’d already seen Dan Hedaya guest star as Danny’s dad. Though the characters are divorced on the show, if they were ever to meet, the internet would probably explode in a TMP/Cheers fandom frenzy. Emmy-winning TMP writer Tracey Wigfield spoke to HollywoodLife.com EXCLUSIVELY at Paleyfest NYC on Oct. 17 and gave us the lowdown on what’s in store for the rest of the season!

“We’re hoping at some point in this 13 episodes to bring together Danny’s parents [Rhea Perlman and Dan Hedaya] and Mindy’s parents because they all are crazy characters who drive Mindy and Danny crazy in different ways,” Tracey told me. (Full disclosure: she’s one of my heroes, because she wrote for 30 Rock for ages and so is now practically related to both Tina Fey and Mindy Kaling.)

Anyone who’s seen TMP knows that Danny’s mom is a total gem, and Mindy’s parents, whom we met in the premiere, are the perfect mix of Mindy. Tracey agreed with me on that: “Mindy’s mom is so dramatic like Mindy is — they all say “how dare you”; they all say “ex-squeeze me”. The actress that plays her mom just did that so beautifully,” she added.

#PaleyFest NYC: ‘The Mindy Project’ Writers & Cast Took Us Behind The Scenes

The Paleyfest panel was just as fun as the carpet — Mindy, Tracey and other cast members and writers entertained the audience for over an hour with stories and set secrets. Tracey talked about writing the role of and starring as Lauren, the girlfriend-turned-wife of Dr. Peter Prentice (Adam Pally) on TMP: “Originally we were like, ‘Wow, maybe this could be Lady Mary from Downton Abbey or Reese Witherspoon.’ And then it was like, ‘Oh, it’s just going to be me,’ which is just as good,” she joked. I think you did just great, Tracey.

HollywoodLifers, would you love to see a Cheers reunion on The Mindy Project? Let me know!

— Gabriella Ginsberg