The Night Court revival wasted no time in proving that it could live up to the legacy of the original sitcom that launched back in the 1980s. A hit right out of the gate in the 2023 TV premiere schedule that earned a renewal after just a few weeks, Night Court has also continued to bring in standout guest stars to join Abby Stone (Melissa Rauch), Dan Fielding (John Larroquette), and the rest. The March 28 episode will debut A.P. Bio alum Lyric Lewis as a wedding planner, and the actress opened up about the experience.
Lyric Lewis comes to Night Court in the March 28 episode, called "Ready or Knot." She'll play a wedding planner by the name of Cynthia, who is only one of the wedding-themed complications this week! A wedding expo in town means a different kind of string of crimes than what Abby and Co. usually deal with during the night shift. According to the NBC episode description, Cynthia will show the finer things in life to none other than Dan.
When the actress spoke with CinemaBlend about Night Court, she explained that the sitcom was not yet a huge TV hit when she filmed her guest spot as Cynthia, as she said:
I knew the the original series was big, and I felt there was a lot of good energy and juju around this one, so it felt exciting and kind of electric. But no! As soon as it came out and it just kind of hit, I wasn't surprised. I'll say that. I definitely was like, 'This feels like something good and big.'
Lyric Lewis' instincts were on the money, as Night Court has certainly done well and already gotten very big by this point in the first season on NBC. It just remains to be seen exactly what kind of new challenges are in store with the next episode! The format of the show is clearly working for fans, and the actress went on to share how she drew on the original series to prepare to guest star:
I'd seen some [of the original]. As a kid I feel like I'd seen episodes here and there, but not in its entirety or anything like that. But then once I got the role, I did my research and I went back and watched some clips and episodes to kind of really get a feel of the vibe for the world and kind of deeply immerse versus the little bits that I remembered from my childhood. When I went back and watched I was like, 'Oh, this is funny!' I was like, 'Alright, this is a fun vibe.' Even to watch it now, I still I feel like [it] held up.
The first run of Night Court (featuring John Larroquette as Dan Fielding and the late Harry Anderson as Harry Stone) ran from 1984 - 1992; according to Lyric Lewis, the humor that made the show a hit back in the day still generates laughs today. The actress clearly also put a lot of thought into preparing for Night Court, which isn't altogether shocking.
After all, between guest stars ranging from Stephnie Weir to figure skaters Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir, Night Court has found some great actors to drop by. So, what was it like for Lyric Lewis to work with John Larroquette on the revival, after watching him in action via the original series? She shared:
He's iconic, so it was great. Most of my stuff was with him, so just to get to play off of him was really truly exciting. It was like a little baby masterclass, almost, to just sit and watch him work and watch how he goes through a script and watch how he prepared for the scene. To see him do his thing was just really awesome.
As Cynthia the wedding planner, Lyric Lewis evidently spent most of her scenes on Night Court opposite John Larroquette as Dan Fielding. Of course, given that the only character currently engaged is Abby (to the certain dismay of Neil after Gurgs' discovery about him), a big question is what will happen to bring Cynthia and Dan together.
Some of Larroquette's earlier comments indicate that love may not be in the air for his character, so what does a wedding planner want with him? Only time and "Ready or Knot" have the answer to that question, but Lyric Lewis previewed what's to come with her character:
She really wants to help this man get married. She heard something and she was inspired... It's like, who does that? Who's like, 'You know what? I'm going to help you do your next wedding.'
See what exactly happens that Cynthia the wedding planner is "inspired" to help Dan (and how much Dan does or does not welcome the attention) with the "Ready or Knot" episode of Night Court on Tuesday, March 28 at 8 p.m. ET on NBC. You can also revisit any episodes from the current first season streaming with a Peacock Premium subscription.
You can also see more of Lyric Lewis via a Peacock subscription, with all four seasons of A.P. Bio available streaming as well. That show may not be coming back, but perhaps Night Court will see more of her in the future... depending on how her story ends on March 28!
