‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’ has always pulled off the most out-of-pocket celebrity appearances. Whether it is famous personalities or major Hollywood stars, the show has a knack for making the most random storylines with its guest stars.
But you definitely didn’t see these ones coming, and considering how many times the show has featured memorable cameos, you might have even forgotten these stars were ever on the show.
10. Jenny Slate
‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’ was collecting SNL cast members like Pokémons. Former star of the show Jenny Slate appears as Bianca, the mistress of Freddy Maliardi, a mobster that Jake is trying to track down.
This is the same episode where Jake creates the ridiculous song to explain to Bianca who is cheating on whom, revealing that Freddy was cheating on her with her sister. Though brief, Slate makes the most out of this very chaotic cameo.
Related: 10 Most Interesting Cases In ‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’
9. Mark Cuban
Yes, ‘Shark Tank’ billionaire Mark Cuban actually made an appearance on ‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’. He shows up when Jake joins his frenemy Doug Judy for a bachelor party in Miami. The group travels there on a private jet provided by Cuban.
The episode also reveals that Doug Judy actually pitched the Sharks his bizarre “Smush Shush”, a noise-cancelling blanket designed for “intimate relations”. Honestly, we need ‘Shark Tank’ to release that episode.
8. Mario Lopez
A.C. Slater himself shows up at Shaw’s Bar when Gina’s coworkers are throwing her a going-away party. Determined to make the best out of the celebration, Jake goes out to secure a celebrity guest and eventually manages to convince Mario Lopez to attend.
But naturally, Gina has her own plans. When Lopez finally arrives, she turns him away simply because she has always wanted the satisfaction of rejecting a celebrity. It is perhaps the most quintessentially Gina response ever.
7. Nick Offerman
Offerman brings his deadpan energy from ‘Parks and Recreation’s Ron Swanson to ‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’ as Frederick, the OB/GYN who once dated Captain Holt. Their relationship ended very badly due to a stolen wooden duck.
But when Terry’s wife goes into labour at the precinct, Jake takes it upon himself to fix the wooden duck debacle and bring Frederick to the check on her. Offerman’s performance makes the awkward reunion between Frederick and Holt just hilarious.
6. Zooey Deschanel
This cameo is probably very hard to forget because it was part of an actual crossover with ‘New Girl’. Zooey Deschanel appears as her character Jess Day, who gets caught up in Jake’s chaotic pursuit of a suspect when he briefly commandeers her car.
The chase ends with Jake crashing the car, leaving Jess to spill soup all over the vehicle. The crossover continued ‘New Girl’, which is why it remains so iconic. On top of it, there are actually many shared actors between both universes.
In Case You Missed It: In Which Episodes Does ‘New Girl’ Crossover With ‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’?
5. Lin-Manuel Miranda
Best known in the musical world, Lin-Manuel Miranda appeared in ‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’ as Amy’s brother, David Santiago. He is described as the “Golden Boy”, and much like his sister, he is a chronic overachiever.
The duo is perfect together at driving each other crazy. There is, of course, the very iconic dance-off between them, but we would have loved to see Lin-Manuel Miranda bust out some tunes from ‘Hamilton’.
4. Bill Hader
This was definitely the most out-of-pocket cameo in the history of the series. Bill Hader delivers such an intense performance that it is hardly forgettable. He comes to the 99th precinct as Captain Holt’s temporary replacement, Captain Seth Dozerman.
Somehow, he is even more serious about productivity than Holt and has a cardiac episode within minutes of stepping into the precinct. As much as we love Hader’s chemistry with Andy Samberg, we were glad to see him gone.
3. Reginald VelJohnson
‘Die Hard’ is practically sacred in the ‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’ universe, so having Reginald VelJohnson – the actor behind Sgt. Al Powell – appear was the perfect bit of fan service. He plays a fictionalized version of himself, who is a part of Boyle’s elaborate scheme for Jake’s bachelor party.
When the plan goes awry, Jake has to piss off VelJohnson to get to Boyle. VelJohnson even threatens to complain about Jake to his idol Bruce Willis. We would have loved to see that conversation happen since Jake is already on the blacklist of Taylor Swift.
2. Pete Davidson
Before his SNL fame, a very young Pete Davidson arrives at the 99th precinct as part of a group of at-risk kids who are there to attend a police program seminar. However, the seminar goes downhill very quickly.
Pete Davidson questions Amy’s racial sensitivity, starts a chant with Gina that black people can sell drugs and then puts a musical spin on Rosa’s very emotional speech, though it is actually very catchy.
1. Adam Sandler
Yet another SNL alumnus and a frequent collaborator with Andy Samberg, Adam Sandler’s cameo didn’t even receive a proper storyline. He appeared as himself, randomly at an auction where Amy and Jake are trying to catch a criminal.
But the impromptu sequence between them is crazy in the best possible way. As he tells Jake, Sandler is apparently there to find antiques for his next movie about the Russian Revolution featuring Kevin James. He definitely left us all curious about this equally crazy movie.
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