For six seasons we had the privilege of watching Dr. Mindy Lahiri run around New York City looking for love while also trying to remain a mature professional in the medical world. After finding love with her grumpy co-worker Danny, the two try to move forward in their relationship once Mindy found out she was pregnant. And once that sweet baby Leo was born, The Mindy Project took a few quirky turns.
For 115 episodes, we’ve seen Mindy through the thick of it. She’s been in catfights, she’s been through breakups, engagements, pregnancies, work requirements — and along the way, we met some pretty interesting characters that were portrayed by actual celebrities. And although the series ended two years ago, we’re taking a step back to take a look at some of the best-forgotten guest stars on The Mindy Project.
CHRISSY TEIGEN
Has anyone counted how many ex-boyfriends Mindy actually had? Like Carrie Bradshaw, it seems like she’s dated half of New York. One of those former boyfriends was Zander — the man who took her virginity in her early 20’s.
After rekindling with Zander in season three, it reminds Mindy of the good times they’ve had. And it doesn’t hurt that he’s super successful. And although she has a boyfriend, she couldn’t help but follow Zander and get to know the adult-version of him. However, out of nowhere, Zander’s girlfriend Grace pops up who happens to be played by Chrissy Teigen!
CHLOE SEVIGNY
Actress Chloe Sevigny had a pretty major roll in the earlier seasons, even though we didn’t see too much of her. Starring as Danny’s ex-wife and the one woman who had a cosmic hold over him, Chloe portrayed Christina. We first saw her after Christina received an old letter from Danny that he wrote right after he learned of her affair. The entire mishap actually rekindled their relationship, which of course ended as soon as it started.
Speaking of famous guest stars, Christina (Sevigny) ends up sleeping with Dr. Paul Leotard who was portrayed by James Franco!
SETH MEYERS
When it comes to TV, Seth Meyers does it all. He’s a comedian, a producer, and a writer. Clearly, his mind works in extremely intelligent ways. Likewise, Mindy Kaling has a similar resume, so it was a fun twist to have Seth guest star on the show.
Mindy and Matt (Meyers) meet after roaming through a bookstore. And the funny thing about Meyers playing a potential love interest for Mindy is that some celebrities on the show play themselves. It is New York after all. In the episode, the two converse around Mindy’s love for fro-yo (and ate a lot of it).
LAURA DERN
Laura Dern is a big-time actress who has been nominated for seven Emmys (and won one of them!). Seeing her in The Mindy Project portraying a foreign doctor named Dr. Ludmilla Trapezikov was a real treat. She looked as stunning as ever but had an unusual accent, which made her role funnier.
In the episode “Best Man”, Dr. Ludmilla Trapezikov meets Mindy to talk about her pregnancy. And unfortunately for Mindy, Dr. Ludmilla Trapezikov didn’t have the kindest things to say. She was essentially too big and too old for a healthy pregnancy…
JORDAN PEELE
Funnyman Jordan Peele made a brief appearance on The Mindy Project back in season one! Thanks to Mindy’s bright and cheery nature (and Minny Mouse-like voice), she grabbed the attention of a few TV executives who thought she would be perfect for a news segment geared towards kids.
As a real-life doctor, she would be teaching viewers one fun fact about the body and beyond. Jordan Peele played Nick, one of the TV reporters who thought Mindy was perfect for the job.
Mindy did give the show a try but she ended up embarrassing herself after realizing people found her annoying.
LAVERNE COX
All hail Laverne Cox! Can this woman ever star in a bad role? While we all fell in love with her on Orange is the New Black, her role in The Mindy Project was equally important.
During Mindy’s pregnancy, she began to feel down on herself and didn’t love her body as she normally did. To help her feel better and love herself, Nurse Tamra introduced Mindy to her cousin, Sheena (Cox). Sheena ended up being everything Mindy needed. She taught her to be brave, to be confident, and to love herself. Sheena even gave Mindy a makeover so she could fall back in love with herself.
JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT
People often forget that Joseph Gordon-Levitt popped up in The Mindy Project as a TV producer for The Real Housewives in season four.
In this episode, Mindy lets her imagination get the best of her when she thinks what life would be like if she and Danny never kissed on that plane. If Danny never ran to the back of the plane to kiss Mindy, she could have fallen for Matt Sherman (Gordon-Levit) and lived a very comfortable and rich life. But we all know her heart belongs to Danny.
JULIE BOWEN
Julie Bowen has been working in Hollywood for a long time but she’s most noted for her role as Claire in Modern Family. However, Bowen does pop up in The Mindy Project as a mother to another child at Leo’s school. Portraying a woman named Daisy, she is the perfect mom in Mindy’s eyes and strived to be as good as Daisy (especially after her son seems so taken by her). As we know though, these moments often happen for Mindy before she comes to the realization that it is what it is. She’s a busy woman who happens to be an important doctor and a mother. She can’t be everywhere at once.
MAX GREENFIELD
New Girl’s Max Greenfield popped up in the second season as a mysterious man named Lee. As per usual, Mindy was on the hunt for a hot guy with Peter when she saw Lee (Greenfield) sitting at the bar talking to a beautiful woman. Mindy decided to shoot her shot and interrupted their conversation so she could snag him. And although she hit a few speedbumps, Lee was eventually taken by her and the two spent the night together.
After not hearing from Lee in the morning, she showed up at his place of work (an elementary school) to bombard him when she noticed he was wearing a wedding ring. As you can imagine, the meeting didn’t end well.
REESE WITHERSPOON
In the very first episode of season one, we learn that although Mindy is an established OBGYN in New York City, she’s a real lover of romantic comedies and fairytales. She references famous actresses and movies all the time when trying to relate to something.
In the episode “Girl Gone Wild,” Mindy finds herself stuck in a cave when she imagines Reese Witherspoon showing up to give her a pep talk. Witherspoon encourages Mindy to fight for what she wants and to actually live her life because life isn’t like movies; movies aren’t real.
