New Girl Cast Reunites at Chrysalis Butterfly Ball After Script Mix-Up

The cast of New Girl reunited on the purple carpet Saturday night at the Chrysalis Butterfly Ball in Los Angeles, collecting the inaugural Rising Phoenix Award and turning Max Greenfield’s much-mocked “reunion scripts” claim into a charity punch line. The Hollywood Reporter reported that Zooey Deschanel, Greenfield, Jake Johnson, Lamorne Morris, Hannah Simone and Damon Wayans Jr. appeared together at The Beehive on Oct. 10 — their first red-carpet outing as a full cast since the Fox comedy ended more than eight years ago. Just Jared confirmed the same lineup and framed the night as a charity reunion rather than an on-screen revival.

According to THR, Greenfield hosted the evening and organized the cast appearance through the group chat after teasing fans earlier with a Today with Jenna & Sheinelle appearance in which he said he had “seen scripts” for a New Girl return. Creator Liz Meriwether later clarified that no revival scripts exist. Just Jared noted that Meriwether had shut down the rumor in late August, leaving Saturday’s Butterfly Ball as the only reunion on the calendar.

Accepting the Rising Phoenix Award, Deschanel teased Greenfield from the stage, thanking him for announcing “an actual New Girl reunion” and making the cast’s lives “so very annoying,” THR reported. Greenfield apologized on the spot, saying the mix-up “did, however, bring a lot of attention to Chrysalis,” the Southern California nonprofit that helps people facing barriers to employment. He joked that of the six actors, “none of whom graduated college except apparently Hannah,” then thanked the crowd for showing up when the cast reunites.

On the carpet, Greenfield told THR he should have simply said a New Girl reunion was happening Oct. 10 “in support of Chrysalis,” calling the pivot a “fun” recovery after he “got excited.” Johnson was less forgiving, saying Greenfield “did such a bad job it was unbelievable” and describing a cast game of trading barbs through interviews that Greenfield “didn’t get the memo” to play — instead sincerely praising nonexistent scripts until Meriwether’s lawyer intervened. Just Jared echoed the carpet quotes and noted Greenfield also served as an honorary co-chair.

THR reported that the ball also honored Jared Wolff, chairman and CEO of Banc of California, with the Corporate Trailblazer Award, and Guadalupe Rios, a former Chrysalis participant now at Caltrans, with the John Dillon Award. Chrysalis positions the Rising Phoenix Award around the series’ theme of starting over — a line Greenfield’s Schmidt delivered about a phoenix needing ash to rise from — tying the sitcom’s found-family premise to the nonprofit’s employment mission.

The Oct. 10 appearance closes a months-long loop that began with Greenfield’s July Today comments, Meriwether’s correction, and Variety’s earlier exclusive confirming the Butterfly Ball booking. Fans hoping for new episodes leave empty-handed, but the cast’s first full red-carpet reunion since the series ended delivered the photo and the punch lines the charity night needed.

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Verification: Cast lineup, Oct. 10 Beehive event, Rising Phoenix Award, Greenfield hosting, Deschanel/Greenfield stage quotes, Johnson carpet critique, Wolff and Rios honors, Chrysalis mission and Meriwether correction context come from The Hollywood Reporter (Kirsten Chuba, Oct. 10, 2026). First full-cast red carpet since the series ended, honorary co-chair note, Meriwether late-August shut-down and matching award-night quotes are corroborated by Just Jared (AJ Pitts, Oct. 11, 2026).