New Girl: 10 Saddest Things About Schmidt

Schmidt is one of the most entertaining characters on New Girl. He is an arrogant and self-centered man who seems to only care about his own brand at first but eventually proves himself to be a carrying and considerate friend.

While Schmidt can get a little out of hand with his comments and can be unlikeable at times, there are other moments when it is hard not to feel sorry for him. It may be easy to laugh at him at times, but there are also some very sad things about Schmidt, from his past to his relationships, that make him more sympathetic than you might think.

10 Friend Anniversary With Nick

Although he has many significant romances throughout the series, perhaps Schmidt’s most important relationship is with Nick, his best friend. The two may fight often and don’t seem to have too much in common, but Schmidt really does love Nick.

Schmidt even celebrates his and Nick’s friendship anniversary and plans a grand party for their ten-year festivities. Despite all the hard work and love Schmidt puts into it, Nick just doesn’t care as much.

9 Hangups About His Weight

In various flashbacks to his youth, we see that Schmidt used to have a problem with his weight. While he seemed happy, he eventually grew self-conscious about how people saw him and started working out to lose weight.

It is great that he was able to get healthy and achieve such a difficult goal, however, he still carries a lot of emotional baggage from that time. Schmidt is often overly tough on himself for how he used to look and it is clear the ridicule he received still stings.

8 Losing Elizabeth

Though he has had a lot of unhealthy relationships over the course of the series, Schmidt’s romance with Elizabeth was certainly one of the most fulfilling. The two met and began dating when they were in college and Elizabeth was genuinely loving of Schmidt even when he was ashamed of himself.

However, when Schmidt starts to lose weight, his whole personality changes and these two people who seemed perfect together drifted apart.

7 Breaking Up With Cece

As soon as Schmidt meets Cece, he falls head-over-heels for her. Of course, he is first just physically attracted to her but eventually, they form a connection and begin a very charming romance.

Despite getting the girl of his dreams, he begins to feel that he is inadequate and that she deserves someone better. In order to allow her to find her full potential, Schmidt breaks up with Cece, something that he quickly regrets as he is in love with her.

6 Cece Gets Engaged

Though he was the one who ended the relationship, Schmidt never really gets over Cece and is devastated when she starts seeing someone else and seems very happy. But when she gets engaged, that is the real dagger in his heart.

To make matter worse, this all happens at Schmidt and Nick’s anniversary party which totally steals the thunder of the special day Schmidt had planned.

5 Losing Elizabeth And Cece

There is no doubt that Schmidt has made some major mistakes at different times and sometimes his misfortunes are his own fault. But that doesn’t mean one can’t still feel sorry for him.

After struggling with the news that Cece is getting married, Schmidt reconnected with Elizabeth only for Cece to call off her marriage because she still loves Schmidt. Unable to choose between them, Schmidt starts dating both girls until they find out and break up with him. A selfish act but it’s still hard to watch.

4 Sexual Contract

Even though it is obviously a bad idea, Schmidt ignores his instincts and embarks on a relationship with his boss. However, the relationship is purely meant to be a sexual one which Schmidt seems alright with until there is a scary additional aspect thrown in.

His boss Emma makes him sign a sexual contract that absolves her of any injuries, emotional or physical, that might occur due to their relationship. This puts Schmidt in a worrisome and potentially dangerous situation.

3 Relationship With His Father

Part of the reason for some of Schmidt’s more unlikeable qualities could have something to do with his father. Though he has a loving yet stern mother, his father left the family when Schmidt was very young and it left an emotional scar on him.

Schmidt’s dad later comes back into his life, but it is clear after years of not knowing this man that he is very hesitant to start a new relationship with him.

2 Harassment At Work

Schmidt’s career is very important to him as he sees it as a way to seem more important. However misguided as that may be, he works hard to get recognition in his job so it is very sad to see that he is subjected to so much harassment at the office.

Schmidt works in an office that is mostly females, so he is the butt of all their sexual jokes which he clearly doesn’t find funny. He is even forced to dress up like a sexy Santa Claus for the office Christmas party which is inappropriate as well as embarrassing for Schmidt.

1 Being Used By Fawn

Schmidt seems to be attracted to powerful women which may be what draws him to start dating Fawn Moscato. Fawn is a city councilwoman who has big political aspirations. While Schmidt is initially excited to be with someone so important, he soon finds he is being used.

Fawn attempts to remake Schmidt in an image that would be beneficial for her politically. When she has an embarrassing public moment, she forces Schmidt to take the blame. His affection for Fawn blinds him to the fact that she has made him a pawn.

About The Author

Colin McCormick
(2030 Articles Published)

Colin McCormick is a Senior Writer with Screen Rant and has been a proud member of the team since 2019. In addition to his work as Screen Rant, Colin is also a writer of News, Feature and Review pieces at Game Rant. Colin has had a long passion and obsession with movies going back to the first time he saw The Lion King in theaters. Along with movies, Colin stays up-to-date on the latest must-see TV shows. While he loves to find interesting projects in any kind of genre, he has a special movie of crime stories that are infused with a little dark humor much like the work of his favorite author, Elmore Leonard.

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