Mindy Kaling and Lang Fisher’s new Netflix series, Never Have I Ever, is a big hit — it’s the story of Devi Vishwakumar (played by Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) and her social struggles in high school, her relationship with her family and so much more.
And yes, it’s narrated by John McEnroe.
That’s blowing a lot of people’s minds when, in the first minutes of the pilot, his voice comes in and highlights from his incredible tennis career play on screen.
“Why is sports icon John McEnroe narrating this tale?” he asks in that moment. And, sure enough, he makes an actual cameo later in the season.
That’s also something he and Kaling have been answering ever since the first season premiered (WARNING: Some NSFW language is in this video with some of his best moments):
Here’s what Kaling told USA TODAY in April:
“One thing that’s common for a lot of Indian parents is a love of tennis. It’s like an English Anglophile kind of thing,” Kaling tells USA TODAY. “When we decided that the character of Devi would have a temper, the McEnroe thing just kept coming back: you know, someone who’s high-achieving but is undermined by their own temper. He has really high standards for himself and everyone around him. We kept talking about him and were like, ‘Wait, should he be doing the narration?’ Devi’s dad loved tennis, and it timed out that he would have grown up watching McEnroe.”
How did this all happen? From McEnroe in an ESPN interview:
My wife (singer and songwriter Patty Smyth) and I were at the Vanity Fair Oscars party last year, and we were on our way in to do [portraits] with Mark Seliger, he’s a great photographer. Mindy was walking out. She was like, “Oh, my God! I can’t believe it’s you! I have this idea about you doing a show that I’m writing!” I’m like, “Oh, OK.” Well, you know how that goes. Most of the time that doesn’t end up happening. So, I took that with a grain of salt, but I told some of my kids the next day that I had met her and what she said. They were like, “You have to do it!” And then it actually happened.
The result? He’s a star:
why did nobody a) understand that what I really need at this time in life is Tennis Content and b) that Never Have I Ever is narrated by John McEnroe??
— lucy💫 (@amylaurences) May 29, 2020
The John McEnroe narration in Never Have I Ever is perfect
— Glendon Palmer (@GlendonPalmer) May 28, 2020
Never Have I Ever in @NetflixIndia
Narrated by tennis star John McEnroe is hilarious,
Watch it— Gaurav Dholakiya (@ISelfGaurav) May 24, 2020
John McEnroe narrates Mindy Kaling’s new Netflix show Never Have I Ever which is a weird choice. The only thing weirder? It works. He’s great.
— Joe Yasharoff (@JYash) May 24, 2020
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