Mindy Kaling Explains Why She Won't Date B.J. Novak: 'He's Really Part Of Our Family'

Mindy Kaling has apparently permanently friend-zoned her ex, B.J. Novak.

During a recent appearance on "The Drew Barrymore Show," Kaling and Barrymore discussed the fact that they've both been single for a while. The topic of Novak entered the chat, and Kaling told the story of how they came to date and eventually become besties. She also explained why she wouldn't consider dating him again.

"I was on a date once and B.J. Novak sat down. And I remember thinking, 'Oh I wish I was on a date with him. He's so attractive,'" Barrymore, 47, said. "'Why is he not with Mindy Kaling? I wanna be with Mindy Kaling. Why are they not together?'"

Kaling, 43, replied, "Wait, wait. Your first reaction was, 'Wow he's so attractive?' He's gonna be so excited about that." Barrymore continued by saying, "You seem like best friends and you're just both so wonderful."

Novak and Kaling dated on and off during their years working together on "The Office" and have remained close friends ever since. And while "The Mindy Project" star, mom to Katherine, 4, and Spencer, 2, said she won't date Novak again, he's a big part of her life and her family. "He is a wonderful friend and he is the godparent of both my kids and he loves children and they're so attached to him," she explained. "He's really part of our family, but we've known each other for a long, long time and I think anyone who's been friends with someone for 18, 19 years and at one point dated and now doesn't, they maybe understand this. You have exes that you wouldn't necessarily marry now."

Earlier this year, Kaling shared some snaps from a night of stargazing at the Griffith Observatory with Novak and her daughter. "My four year old had the best night of her life at our star party + Saturn spotting at @griffithobservatory! We kept her up way past her bedtime and it was worth it, even though it was cloudy last night," her caption reads.

Many of her fans dropped into the comment section to leave their speculations that Novak is the father of Kaling's children, despite Kaling denying it on more than one occasion. "I know we’re supposed to have moved on from this or whatever but you can’t convince me BJ is not Mindy’s baby daddy! Like, are you actually kidding me 😭," one fan wrote. Another added, "It's getting pretty obvious now ❤️" Another follower asked, "When are you and bj Novak going to finally reveal your romance and love child 😭😭😭 I can’t take it."

Other followers made comments about the exciting evening. "I can totally see Ryan taking Kelly on this date and he randomly points at a star and tells her he bought it for her 😂," one fan wrote. Another said, "Star gazing is the best. Your daughter will learn to reach for the stars.✨✨" Another follower simply commented, "I love your friendship ❤️❤️❤️"

During the summer, Novak shared a photo on Instagram of Kaling visiting him on the set of "Vengeance," captioning it, "A friend visiting the set of Vengeance. #tbt" His follower had similar things to say about the two besties in the comment section.

"Get married already, you two!! 🙄," one follower wrote. Another said, "'Friend' yes we believe you both 😂😂😂" And another fan said, "This is the lamest caption, BJ 🙄 We all know you're in love with her."