Jennifer Coolidge Wants to Return to Broadway

In a new interview with Wicked star Ariana Grande, Jennifer Coolidge has revealed that she would like to return to the stage, also revealing how performing in a summer stock production of Grease made her realize she was funny.

During their interview, which was part of an Entertainment Weekly profile, Coolidge revealed that returning to the stage in a "really cool play" is something she is looking to do.

"Well, I've done two Broadway shows. One of them [2001's The Women] had a sort of good little run, and then the other one [2010's Elling] didn't really have much of a run at all. But I would like to do a really cool play again. I don't care if it's comedic or not," Coolidge stated.

Coolidge went on to discuss her earlier experiences with comedy, stating that playing Patty Simcox in a summer stock production of Grease helped her realize that she was funny.

"I was in this show, Grease, during college, doing summer stock. I played Patty Simcox, the cheerleader, and I took this baton and I was doing all sorts of weird s--- with it on stage, and this older summerstock theater guy came up to me, he was like maybe 15 years older than me, and goes, 'You know that thing you're doing with the baton, Jennifer?' And I go, 'Yeah.' And he goes, 'That's f---ing funny.' And I remember thinking, 'I don't ever remember getting a compliment before this moment.'"

Coolidge recently won an Emmy Award for her fan-favorite performance as Tanya McQuoid in The White Lotus, which just wrapped its second season last night. She was also recently seen in Ryan Murphy's The Watcher on Netflix. While both shows have been picked up for new seasons, Coolidge revealed that she does not yet know if she will be returning to either of them.

Coolidge is also known for her roles as Jeanine Stifler in the American Pie film series (1999-2012), as Paulette Bonafonté Parcelle in the Legally Blonde film series (2001-2003), and as Fiona in the romantic comedy film A Cinderella Story (2004). She is a regular actor in Christopher Guest's mockumentary films, such as Best in Show (2000), A Mighty Wind (2003), For Your Consideration (2006), and Mascots (2016).

Coolidge has appeared in films, including Click (2006), Date Movie (2006), Epic Movie (2007), American Dreamz (2006), Soul Men (2008), Gentlemen Broncos (2009), Austenland (2013), Like a Boss (2020), Promising Young Woman (2020) and Arlo the Alligator Boy (2021).

Coolidge is an alumna of The Groundlings, an improv and sketch comedy troupe based in Los Angeles.