Key Points
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Chuck Lorre claims CBS “hated” Melissa McCarthy during casting for Mike & Molly.
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“Believe it or not, they wanted a hot young woman to play a woman struggling with her weight,” says the executive producer.
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McCarthy won an Emmy for the role during the first season of Mike & Molly.
Melissa McCarthy might be a comedic genius, but her casting on Mike & Molly was nothing short of melodramatic
For six seasons, the actress starred as Molly, an elementary school teacher who falls in love with a Chicago police officer named Mike (Billy Gardell) after meeting at an Overeaters Anonymous group. McCarthy won an Emmy for the titular role, but was actually the last cast member to join the CBS sitcom, mere months before its 2010 premiere.
Lorre, the show’s executive producer, recalls the Molly’s casting as “a tortuous journey,” in his new memoir Sitcom.
Likening the process to Jon Cryer’s hiring as neurotic chiropractor Alan Harper on his other series, Two and a Half Men, Lorre writes: “Once again, my brilliant casting director, Nikki Valko, brought in a comic genius. Melissa McCarthy. And once again, CBS hated her.”
He continues, “Believe it or not, they wanted a hot young woman to play a woman struggling with her weight. It was even suggested by one exec — a female exec — that I consider casting a more attractive actress and put her in a fat suit.”
But after championing both Cryer and The Big Bang Theory‘s Kunal Nayyar, Lorre says he had “learned a few things” about his casting instincts.
“I was no longer an origami showrunner, ready to fold at first push,” he writes in Sitcom. “Melissa was gonna be my Molly. End of discussion.”
Months later, the show’s star gave one of the standout performances in the all-female comedy Bridesmaids — which ultimately earned McCarthy an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
“Forgive me for being a little smug, but when Bridesmaids came out, I felt pretty god-damn smart,” Lorre admitted.
Representatives for both CBS and McCarthy did not immediately respond to Entertainment Weekly‘s request for comment.
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Mike & Molly, which also starred Swoosie Kurtz as Molly’s mother, was canceled in 2016 after six seasons.
McCarthy has since successfully transitioned to dramatic roles, like the Oscar-nominated Can You Ever Forgive Me? and her upcoming portrayal of Patsy Ramsey in the Netflix series, The Murder of JonBenét Ramsey.
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