Mere days after Netflix confirmed that its Gilmore Girls reunion is officially happening—free coffee and Pop-Tarts for all!—series co-star Melissa McCarthy has broken her silence on the Stars Hollow homecoming, and why she isn't participating.
On Tuesday afternoon, the actress took to Twitter to explain why she won't be reprising her beloved role as Sookie St. James—bubbly business partner and best friend to Lorelai Gilmore—alongside series stars Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel. And according to McCarthy, her absence has nothing to do with her busy schedule or subsequent rise to leading-lady status courtesy of Bridesmaids, Mike & Molly, and Spy.
“Thanks for the invite,” McCarthy wrote in response to one fan's plea to return for the four-part reunion. “[B]ut sadly no one asked me or Sookie to come back to Stars Hollow. Wish them all the best!!”
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Even so, Gilmore Girls creator Amy Sherman-Palladino has gone on-record already this week claiming that she has been in discussions with McCarthy’s camp—although maybe not with the actress herself. In an interview with TVline on Monday, Sherman-Palladino said of the Ghostbusters reboot star, “She’s really f—ing busy. . .But the thing I have said [to her team] is, ‘Look, if Melissa is available and has an afternoon free, I’ll write her a scene.’”
And although it sounds like Netflix’s four ninety-minute episodes—which are said to each take place in a new season of the year—are written, Sherman-Palladino maintains that her offer is genuine.
“Melissa was one of us,” the creator continued. “If she has a spare moment to run over [to the set]—even if for just a cameo—we would be totally game. And if it’s a last-minute thing, I would write her in and we would figure it out. That’s the way we left it.”
While, at present, McCarthy will not appear in the reunion, a smattering of other supporting players will, including Scott Patterson, Kelly Bishop, Scott Gunn, and Keiko Agena.
The reunion specials are being viewed as a proper send-off for the series, whose seventh season (without Sherman-Palladino at the helm) was met with mixed reviews and disappointed reactions. But how proper of a send-off will a Gilmore Girls finale be sans Sookie?
V.F. Hollywood had reached out to Netflix for comment, but has not heard back.
