Quinta Brunson Idolizes Mindy Kaling, Says Her Work Is 'Hard To Pull Off'

Quinta Brunson has made a huge name for herself following her recent creation – “Abbott Elementary.” Her outstanding performance in the sitcom show, as well as the impressive storyline, has set the standard high for her successors. 

However, Brunson still has people she looks up to and admires in the Hollywood industry. A peculiar celebrity whom she holds in high esteem is the talented screenwriter and producer Mindy Kaling. She made her preference known during an exclusive interview.

Brunson stars as the lead actress in “Abbott Elementary,” playing the character of Janine – an idealistic and ambitious young teacher at a Philadelphia elementary school in the mockumentary TV series that airs on ABC.

Brunson, during an interview, gave a huge shout-out to her colleague Kaling. While chatting with The Hollywood Reporter, the writer/producer didn't hesitate in giving credit to whom credit is due.

When asked who she would like to collaborate with as her influence strengthens, Brunson confessed that she prefers working with her peers. She explained, "Not to be corny, but I really enjoy working with my peers, people who are just across the pond from me, or someone whose talent I think has not been put on display yet."

She referenced the newest addition to the second season of "Abbott Elementary," Keyla Monterroso Mejia, who plays the role of teacher's aide Ashley. However, when asked if there were any household names she would consider, the brilliant creator wasted no time mentioning Kaling.

The “Big Mouth” actress had this to say, “Mindy Kaling. She has a little renaissance happening. I don’t think what she’s doing is easy to pull off, and I feel like people are sleeping on her,”

She continued, citing "The Office" alum as one who deserved accolades for breaking boundaries at their jobs in the competitive industry. In her words, “I get it, she’s Mindy Kaling, so they’re not really. But if she were a man, people would never stop talking about her. What she’s doing is really hard to pull off.”

She went ahead to praise the Netflix hit series “Never Have I Ever,” which was created and directed by Kaling. In her words, “Never Have I Ever has a K-pop-level standom around it, and ‘Sex Lives of College Girls' is just a really good f**king show that people can’t wait to come back.”

If Brunson's appraisal of Kaling has probably piqued your interest, here are some juicy details about the “Mindy Project” actress's personal life and some of the struggles she faced to get to the top.

Per Insider, the actress is a native of Cambridge, Massachusetts, and daughter to Indian immigrants Avu Chokalingam, her father, and Swati Roysircar, her mother, who she sadly lost to pancreatic cancer in 2012. 

Kaling attended Dartmouth college and went on to intern on Conan O’Brien’s talk show while still in college. Her rise to fame began at the age of 24 when she wrote a comedic play that debuted at the New York International Fringe Festival in 2002.

The success of the play landed the creative writer her staff writing gig on the first season of the iconic sitcom “The Office.” Kaling, while reminiscing on her humble beginnings on the first season of writing the show, said, “I was the youngest, and I had no TV experience… I was very demure”. She, however, evolved and went on to direct and produce several episodes of the hit show until 2013.

In a shocking revelation, the “Ocean’s 8” star previously disclosed that after “The Office” was nominated for an Emmy, the "Academy" tried to cut her from the list of producers and asked for her to share her direct contributions.

The screenwriter, however, stood her ground and fought for what rightfully belonged to her, and fortunately for her, her other co-producers had her back and made sure she remained credited.

Moving on to greater things, the talented actress went on to write, produce and star in her show, “The Mindy Project,” which did pretty well and had high ratings. In a recent update, Kaling has officially signed on to co-write the third film of the trilogy, “Legally Blonde.” 

Although the success of "Abbott Elementary" has earned Brunson praises for spearheading the return of network comedy. However, the "A Black Lady Sketch Show" star refuses the accolade wholeheartedly.

As previously reported, Brunson, during a friendly chat, cleared the air and affirmed that broadcast comedy had been playing a part in our society long before the commencement of her brilliant show.

In her words, “Network, all this time, has still been putting big comedies on the air. CBS especially was banging out shows with super high ratings, like, ‘Young Sheldon.’" She further added, “The Big Bang Theory was on the air forever. And ABC: ‘The Crooners’, ‘The Goldbergs,’ ‘Black-ish.’ They’re holding their own.” 

Notwithstanding, “Abbott Elementary” remains a remarkable show and has drawn in ABC's best numbers since “Modern Family” concluded its run in 2020.