Mindy Kaling stepped away from acting for a bit, but now, she’s ready to run point on screen.
The 45-year-old starred as Kelly Kapoor in the NBC sitcom “The Office” for eight seasons from 2005 to 2013. From there, Kaling garnered a slew of iconic roles including her own show “The Mindy Project” which aired a six season run from 2012 to 2017.
After starting her own production company called Kaling International in 2012, she spearheaded the comedy “Never Have I Ever” which was a Netflix hit for four seasons before ending in 2023.
Now, the “Inside Out” vet is explaining why she stepped back from the screen.
“A show literally about an Indian American family in Southern California, and if I wasn’t on that—what’s wrong with me?” Kaling told The Hollywood Reporter on Thursday. “I think there is a part of me that feels a little superstitious. I’m like, ‘these seem to have gone well and I’m not in them so maybe I’ll wait.’ ”
These days, the actress is ready to get back in front of the camera.
“I miss it,” admitted Kaling. “I would like to write or co-create a show for me to act in soon.”
Although the “Late Night” alum didn’t elaborate on what kind of project she sees herself in, she did note she’d love to act and direct it.
As Kaling put it, doing both is “unbelievably fun and it’s so efficient.” The last time she did so was on “The Mindy Project.”
“I would love to do that again,” she went on. “That’s the thing that maybe in the next couple of years, when I launch a couple of other things that are earlier in the pipeline, that would be something that would be fun to do again.”
Kaling’s latest co-creation was the Netflix sports comedy “Running Point” – which debuted in February and starred Kate Hudson, Brenda Song, Chet Hanks, Max Greenfield, Drew Tarver, Scott MacArthur and Justin Theroux.
The businesswoman executive-produced the 10 episode series, which was recently renewed for season two.
Kaling also spoke to the outlet about keeping her production company smaller.
“Here’s my thing. I have worked on many different platforms and it’s not just about the money, but more often than not, the money represents real enthusiasm,” she shared. “Sometimes it doesn’t; sometimes I’ve done stuff for less money because the people seem so excited, like on the Zoom after the pitch.”
“The problem is that people are switching their jobs quickly that for me, I don’t think there’s been an instance where the person I sold a show, to that team has stayed intact for two years. Executives are moving constantly up and so to me, I never get too married to a creative team.”
When it came to working with Kaling on “Running Point,” the show’s star had nothing but praise for the mom-of-two.
In May, Hudson, 46 said during a panel at an Emmy FYC event, per People: “I have to say, I’ve fallen in love with this woman. And she’s just not only so brilliant, but so trusting … she puts the best team together.”
“And she was pregnant,” the singer expressed. “We had a script, like our first table read. She’s on Zoom. She then has the baby and is sending notes, like an hour after she has the baby. I was like, ‘Isn’t Mindy literally in labor?’ She is a powerhouse and delivers what she says she’s going to deliver.”
With season two around the corner, Kaling teased what fans are in store for while talking to E! News on Thursday.
“Season two is so good,” she gushed. “We hit the ground running. There is so much – can I say this? There’s jut so much romance and sex and fun screaming arguments about basketball which is all anybody wants to see.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
