This New York City Teacher Might Be the Inspiration Behind New Girl: ‘You’re Jess Day!’

While many people could relate to sitcoms and their characters, this former New York City teacher may have been the inspiration behind the protagonist of New Girl. Michaela Lae (@viperpilotkarathrace) on TikTok gave a compelling reason why she might be the real Jessica Day.

“New Girl is not based on me, but my 16-year-old niece is convinced that New Girl is based on me,” Michaela told TikTok. She denies that the sitcom was based on her life, and the teacher has an avenue to deny her niece’s suspicion. After all, she didn’t write the story herself.

She and her niece were having a conversation about adulthood. Michaela said that her niece hoped to live in New York in her early 20s, get an apartment with her friends, and have a lot of fun. Although her niece already lives there, she dreams of being independent enough to do whatever she wants. It’s understandable, as moving out is often the hallmark of growing up.

This prompted Michaela to talk about her early 20s experiences with New York City. Michaela thinks these were the best years of her life. She said, “When I was teaching elementary school, I lived in an illegal loft with three guys, and I was the only one who had a door because I was the girl, and they sort of all adopted me.”

Is she New Girl, or are these just coincidences?

Michaela continued, “They built me a loft to study when I went to grad school. They helped me act out things with my students when I did dramas with my students.”

Is it a familiar plot? It definitely was to Michaela’s niece, who she said froze in the middle of the street. Her niece said, “Auntie Mookie, are you New Girl?“

Michaela laughed it off and said, “No! That takes place in LA.” But Michaela made a sidebar comment and said that she went to school with the woman who created New Girl. The admission fueled her niece’s speculation.

To confirm her suspicion, her niece asked her if she owned a ukelele. Back in the day, almost every millennial owned one—or played one. It’s practically a hallmark of the generation, and yet, Michaela’s niece was convinced that this is also proof that she’s the main character of New Day.

“Are you kidding me? You’re Jess Day!” Her niece said. When they got to the coffee shop, her niece couldn’t stop talking about how her aunt is Jessica Day—Michaela said it made her feel famous.

TikTok thinks they found Jessica Day

It seems that Michaela’s niece isn’t the only one convinced. Even TikTok believes that Michaela’s the real-life Jessica Day. One commenter wrote, “I was on your side until you said you went to school with the creator.” Most of social media no longer thinks this is all just a coincidence.

New Girl is a story about Jessica Day (Zooey Deschanel), a young woman who decided to move into a loft in Los Angeles after a horrendous breakup. There, she lives with three men—Nick, Schmidt, and Winston—who become something of a family to her.

Perhaps what completely convinced social media that Michaela’s the real deal are her throwback photos with the men she lived with. Aside from Michaela, her friends also looked like the perfect casting for Nick and Schmidt. One commenter wrote, “This feels like it was given to casting honestly.”

With all the parallels, it’s starting to look more like a documentary and less of a sitcom.

(featured image: Fox)

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