Whatever Happened To Cece From New Girl?

Since going their separate ways in 2017, the cast of "New Girl" has stayed busy. Jake Johnson started a podcast, Zooey Deschanel got engaged to HGTV star Jonathan Scott, and Lamorne Morris won an Emmy. A lot has happened to the residents of the loft. One cast member has stayed particularly low-key, and it's someone who hasn't received the same comedic credit as some of her former co-stars: Hannah Simone. 

On the popular sitcom, Simone played Cece Parekh, a character who arguably had the best arc of any of the main cast members. Cece went from a disinterested model with little direction to a boss business woman. Simone played the character of Cece beautifully, and since the series ended, she's been looking to find that same magic in another character. For anyone who's lost track, here's what Hannah Simone has been up to since the beloved comedy series "New Girl" ended.

The year 2017 was major for Hannah Simone. In December of that year, the hit comedy series "New Girl" wrapped filming. "After 7 years, 146 episodes, at least six weddings, two funerals, a gravity defying badger, a cat named Ferguson, a douchebag jar, a Bollywood dance routine and an apartment that changed my life ... it's over," Simone wrote on Instagram after the series wrapped filming. While the final season had yet to air, the cast was finished with their portion of the work. Simone's final season storyline focused on her finding a balance between motherhood and her career, and the arc wasn't too different from what Simone was dealing with in real life as she welcomed her first child, a boy, in August of that same year.

Simone and her husband, Jesse Giddings, quietly welcomed their son, declining to post the news on social media, just as they had done the year prior when they got married. Simone did take to a magazine to share her son's nursery, though. "I found inspiration through my travels, and I was able to create a room that takes on a cozy rustic style while also maintaining a nostalgic vintage feel," Simone told People. The actor also added touches that were reminiscent of her childhood in Canada, and she was sure to include pieces like a handmade rug and a stuffed buffalo and owl.

The end of a successful TV series can be scary for an actor as it often means they have to begin auditioning for roles again. But the end of "New Girl" wasn't so bad for Hannah Simone as she had plenty of work opportunities lined up. Most notably, before the final season of "New Girl" had even finished airing, it was announced in 2018 that Simone had signed on to star in a remake of the '80s sci-fi series "Greatest American Hero." The star was, understandably, elated. "Believe it or not, I'm walking on air," Simone wrote on Instagram of the news.

The green light was particularly significant as it was going to star Simone, a woman of color, whereas the original featured a mostly white cast. "I am going to the table read for a show starring the first lead female superhero of color on TV. This show is surrounded by a female head of network, female head of studio, a female showrunner, a female director and female executive producers," Simone shared on Instagram at the time. "I couldn't be more proud to be part of redefining what it is to be 'The Greatest American Hero.'" Unfortunately for Simone, the series didn't get picked up by the network, as it reportedly wasn't right for the network's brand. "We just found out that network TV isn't ready for the first brown female superhero on TV. This would have been history making and so empowering for young girls around the world," Simone tweeted of the premature cancellation, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.

Although Hannah Simone's anticipated pilot fell through, the actor was still booked and busy in 2018. That fall, Simone had a three-episode arc on another sitcom, "Single Parents," which starred Cobie Smulders' husband Taran Killam and "Gossip Girl" star Leighton Meester. The part served as a bit of a "New Girl" reunion for Simone as she was able to act alongside Killam who had a small part in an episode of the bygone sitcom in 2016. What's more, Simone got to work with Elizabeth Meriwether and J.J. Philbin — the creators of "Single Parents" — again, both of whom she worked with on "New Girl."

The same day her first episode of "Single Parents" aired, more big news for Simone was announced — she was set to star in, co-write, and executive produce a comedy series partially inspired by her own upbringing. The actor saw the pickup as another win for diverse storytelling. "Almost every audition I went on was for a character with a funny accent or zero lines. Two years after that Liz Meriwether cast me as Cece. An American girl in a gang of friends who just happened to be Indian," Simone revealed on Instagram of her first experiences in Hollywood. "Here I am now, a decade later in a position where I can help tell more stories of Americans who just happen to be Indian. Or half Indian. Just weird funny families trying to survive each other and this world." Unfortunately, Simone's series never aired, and there was no formal announcement on what became of it.

After what might have been a disappointing end of the decade for Hannah Simone career-wise, things were looking up for the actor. In March 2020, it was announced that Simone was set to star alongside Elizabeth Hurley in a mother-daughter comedy series. Unfortunately, once again, nothing became of the series, and there was no formal announcement as to why. The series could have tested poorly among beta audiences, or it could've been one of the countless projects that was shelved due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Whatever the case, it put Simone in a position to have to search for work again.

Fortunately for the actor, she found plenty of options in the voice-over world. Simone was cast in a variety of animated projects including "Hoops," "Loafy," and "Where's Waldo?" Most notably, Simone was cast in the series "Mira, Royal Detective" alongside Utkarsh Ambudkar and Kal Penn. "I'm so excited to be part of this all star south Asian cast on [Disney Junior]. The cartoon I always wished for as a kid is here. Still can't believe I get to be a part of it," Simone announced on Instagram of the series. The show ran for 54 episodes, 21 of which featured Simone, and came to an official end in 2022.

Before Hannah Simone worked as an actor, she was in a totally different field. "I worked for the United Nations, based in London and Switzerland. I was a human rights and refugee officer and developed programs for youth. I like to treat the entire world like it's my neighborhood," she said in an interview with the Los Angeles Times. Apparently that spirit never left the actor, because when 2020 rolled around, Simone was dialed into activism on multiple fronts. Simone was particularly fervent about using her platform to advocate for Black Lives Matter.

Additionally, Simone posted on social media repeatedly throughout the year reminding people to vote, often using clips and screenshots from her hit series "New Girl" to further her cause. "America, Please. Thanks, from a very invested guest in your country," the Canadian actor wrote in an Instagram post of her wearing a "Vote" t-shirt. Though she wasn't part of filming, Simone did post a promo featuring her former "New Girl" co-stars, who had reprised their old roles, encouraging citizens to vote and explaining how to do it from home. "When your arch nemesis makes a great point," Simone joked in the caption.

By 2022, rewatch podcasts had become all the rage. Actors from series going as far back as the '80s and '90s got together to rewatch episodes and add commentary to the show and behind-the-scenes details. Fans love the format, and "New Girl" stars Hannah Simone, Lamorne Morris, and Zooey Deschanel teamed up to give their sitcom the podcast treatment. That year, the actors launched "Welcome to Our Show." "'New Girl' fans have a lot of questions about everything from the actual rules of True American to ping pong etiquette with Prince," Simone said in the iHeart Media press release. "Zooey, Lamorne and I have missed each other so much, and I'm so excited that we've created a show where we can finally answer those questions and share so many untold crazy 'New Girl' stories that happened while we made the show!"

The first episode of the podcast series took listeners back to the pilot episode of "New Girl" and mentioned some details on the stars' auditions. For the second episode, the hosts brought in director Jake Kasdan to talk about his work on the first two episodes, and the series went on from there, recapping television episodes and having cast and crew on for interviews. And the feedback was generally positive. "This podcast is perfect for people that love the show. The show is very funny and entertaining to listen to. I am a huge fan of the show and it is very cool to hear all the behind the scenes secrets that only the actors would know. I cannot wait for more episodes to come out!" one reviewer penned (via Gwinnett Magazine).

Hannah Simone hasn't always had the opportunity to act, but she's been able to flex her creative muscles in other ways. Simone's husband, Jesse Giddings, is a real estate developer, and in 2023, the star helped her spouse design the interior of Palm Springs rental properties he was putting up. "I love interior design," Simone told Us Weekly while showing what a day in her life looked like. The couple showed off one of the Simone-designed spaces on social media, and the home boasted a white kitchen, mid-century modern furniture, and some rustic and bohemian touches throughout.

Simone hasn't just helped her husband with his work, but she's done what she can to support her mother-in-law in her creative endeavors, too. In the summer of 2023, the actor shared that, after taking her husband's mother to see a play in Los Angeles, her mother-in-law was cast in the independent film "Still Scattered." As Simone has done for many of her friends before, she took to Instagram to promote the project. "To my friends in LA, let's put our money where it matters and support this truly independent phenomenal film. To my friends around the world, this is why the world of film making is still so magical," Simone wrote. "If you are looking for ways to support truly independent film, distract yourself by watching a great story and/or witnessing a true Hollywood story of a woman being discovered overnight at a Christmas party and becoming a star," she added.

Hannah Simone clearly has a good reputation in the sitcom world, because despite some of her past projects failing, she continues to get cast. In 2022, it was announced that the actor had signed on to star in a new sitcom alongside former "Jane the Virgin" cast member Gina Rodriguez and "Superstore" alum Lauren Ash in "Not Dead Yet," a unique comedy based on the book "Confessions of a Forty-Something F**k Up."

"I read the pilot, and it had so many of the things that I look for and I really love. It had so much heart; it was really honest about what it's like to be a mess and hold it all together and have work-life balance. It just let all the characters fall apart a little bit, and there was so much truth in it, which was really wonderful," Simone told Salon of the series. "It made me laugh out loud when I read it, but it also got me very emotional, which surprised me. That was one thing that really drew me to it," she said, adding that she was especially excited to work with Rodriguez. The show debuted in 2023 to great viewership and had decent audience reviews, but it performed poorly among critics. After getting picked up for a second season, the show was canceled.

After wrapping the first season of the "Welcome to Our Show" podcast, Hannah Simone and Lamorne Morris took an extended break before starting season two. When the duo returned in 2024, a lot had changed. "We are so excited. It is season two of your favorite 'New Girl' rewatch podcast. We have got a new season. We got a new name, and we got a brand new episode every week," Simone revealed in a promo for the podcast on Instagram. The two renamed their show "The Mess Around," a nod to Morris and Simone's characters' recurring bit on "New Girl," the "classic Winston and Cece mess around."

In addition to the new name, the podcast moved forward without Zooey Deschanel. The rebrand was handled well, so fans didn't seem to notice that the former host was no longer part of the project. Morris and Simone didn't address Deschanel's departure, but there doesn't seem to be any bad blood between the former co-stars as Deschanel liked the post announcing the podcast's rebrand, and she sent Morris her congratulations after his 2024 Emmy win. The hosts did address some changes they'd be making to their podcast moving forward, though. "We listened to all your feedback while we were gone, and we really thought about what kind of show we wanted to bring you," Simone said in one of the first episodes of the show's return, adding that she and Morris would be bringing fans more deep dives into episodes of "New Girl" and hosting actors who had guest starred.