Every Cameo In Gilmore Girls’ Revival, A Year In The Life

The 2016 Gilmore Girls reunion A Year in the Life was a star-studded affair, and many fans missed out on some of the countless cameos featured in the miniseries. A cozy dramedy following the exploits of titular mother/daughter team Lorelei and Rory Gilmore, Gilmore Girls ran for 7 seasons and accrued a cult following during its initial run thanks to its superb cast.

Gilmore Girls was praised for its snappy dialogue and sharp characterization, but one thing that the show was never famous for was its star power. Despite the occasional appearance from random celebrities such as literary legend Norman Mailer (playing himself as a hotel guest who refuses to leave), most of Gilmore Girls guest stars were reliably great screen veterans such as Twin Peaks’ Madchen Amick or a young Chad Michael Murray, and it was clear the series hired actors based on their ability rather than recognisability.

However, as is standard practice for a reunion special, Netflix’s Gilmore Girls revival A Year in the Life was nowhere near as conservative in its casting and pulled out all the stops when it came to big-name cameos. Members of the original cast returned despite their serious star power (although only briefly, in the cases of Melissa McCarthy and Jared Padalecki), and all manner of hitherto-unseen stars from the world of movies, cookery shows, and television dropped in alongside the familiar faces. There are countless cameos studded throughout the action of A Year in the Life, but luckily combing through the revival gives Gilmore Girls fans a chance to catch them all.

Roy Choi and Rachael Ray as Themselves

A pair of Food Network staples, legendary chefs Roy Choi and Rachael Ray both appear in the miniseries as replacement cooks in Lorelei’s Dragonfly Inn. Of course, even these famous faces can’t compare to the absent Sookie, so both chefs are hired and fired in short order and mostly exist to remind viewers how much Gilmore Senior (and the audience) misses Melissa McCarthy’s comic relief.

Mae Whitman as Marcy

Of all the cameos in A Year in the Life, Mae Whitman has the biggest disparity between her real-life fame and the brevity of her role onscreen. Maybe the Duff star was busy, but despite being a well-known comic performer who has appeared in everything from Scott Pilgrim Vs The World to Arrested Development, Whitman’s part in the Gilmore Girls revival is limited to a momentary appearance playing a girl in line. Lorelei hands her some free Krodo cakes and that is the first and last viewers see of Whitman, who most likely appeared in the cameo as she plays Graham’s other on-screen daughter in the dramedy series Parenthood.

Jared Padalecki as Dean

Although some of Gilmore Girls‘ other major love interests, Logan and Jess, also appear in the miniseries, it’s hardly fair to call their appearances cameos since both actors reprise their roles for numerous lengthy scenes and have a significant impact on the revival’s plot. The Rory Gilmore love interest (and eventual breakup) who is reduced to a cameo, though, is the one whose actor has the biggest post-Gilmore Girls profile and the one who left the show earliest. Supernatural star Jared Padalecki returns as Dean, Rory’s first love who she endures an awkward supermarket catch up with.

Paul Anka as Himself

The legendary crooner and namesake of Lorelei’s pet dog, Paul Anka appears in her dream once again in a cute throwback to the original series.

Gregg Henry as Mitchum Huntzberger

In one of the revival’s best scenes, Mitchum Huntzberger returns as Logan’s father. Despite his professed view that Rory isn’t cut out to be a writer, Henry’s character offers to set Gilmore Junior up with an interview at Conde Nast. Throughout the series, Henry’s plainspoken patriarch is a perfect foil for Richard Gilmore, and this cameo is a great chance to advance the plot whilst also touching on Rory’s downfall.

Ray Wise as Emily’s Unnamed Suitor

The embodiment of evil in Twin Peaks (spoilers, sort of) Ray Wise appears as Emily’s new love interest. He’s first seen during the pivotal funeral scene, waxing poetic about his friendship with her late husband Richard. But eagle-eyed viewers will notice that Wise’s unnamed character can also be glimpsed again later on in A Year in the Life, seemingly romancing Emily at her new Nantucket home.

Chris Eigeman as Jason Stiles

During the funeral scene in “Winter”, HBO’s Girls actor Chris Eigeman briefly reprises his role as Lorelei’s most underrated love interest, Jason Stiles. The sharp-witted businessman was a rare match for Lorelei’s motor-mouth, and one Gilmore Girls could have fleshed out more during his time in the series. However, this short appearance (unfortunately) sees his character on his best behavior as Jason endeavors to avoid an awkward encounter with Emily having screwed over her late husband years earlier in a business deal which led to his and Lorelei’s breakup.

Jason Mantzoukas as Robert Castellanos

Brooklyn 99’s Adrian Pimento actor Jason Mantzoukas shows up as the lawyer who breaks the bad news to Rory: she’s been let go from her contract to co-write the memoirs of an eccentric English author. This one is a bit of a wasted opportunity as Mantzoukas is an often-inspired comic performer left with a pretty thankless bit part, but it’s nice to see the actor getting work regardless.

Sutton Foster as the Star of Stars Hollow: The Musical

Critics didn’t care for the episode “Summer” and it’s clearly the least liked of the miniseries’ four outings, but one bright spot in this middling episode is an appearance from Younger star Sutton Foster. For readers wondering why the actor appears as the star of the Stars Hollow Musical, it’s because Foster was the lead in Gilmore Girls creator Amy Sherman-Palladino’s short-lived show Bunheads.

Jason Ritter as Park Ranger

A staple of television and the stage, Jason Ritter is well-known as Gilmore Girls star Lauren Graham’s love interest on the post-Gilmore Girls series Parenthood. Here, he puts in an appearance as the beleaguered park ranger who is attempting to put hikers off trying to recreate the bestselling memoir and later blockbuster movie Wild and endangering their lives for the sake of a midlife crisis.

Alex Borstein as Miss Celine

Some Gilmore Girls fans will remember Alex Borstein as Miss Celine, Emily’s zany stylist, while others will know her as the original actor who played Sookie before Melissa McCarthy took on the part. Others will know her as the Independence Inn’s harpist who appeared in a few early Gilmore Girlsepisodes, and others still will know her as the voice of Family Guy’s Lois Griffin. In A Year in the Life, the comic actor reprises the role of Miss Celine to dress Lorelei and Luke for their big, long-delayed day.

About The Author

Cathal Gunning
(1461 Articles Published)

Cathal Gunning has been writing about movies and TV online since 2020. His obsessions include The Simpsons, Stephen King, the Scream series, and the horror genre in general. He has spent more time thinking about Stranger Things than the writers of Stranger Things, and he has never seen a Star War.

More From Cathal Gunning