Ted Lasso's Juno Temple was surprised she got cast in a comedy

Juno Temple has been nominated for an Emmy for her work on Ted Lasso two years in a row, but she was initially surprised that she booked a role in a comedy at all. In a new interview on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon, she shares how she thought her casting was a mistake at first because of her drama background.

“You know, I’ve played, like, lesbian werewolves,” Temple says, referring to 2012's Jack & Diane. “I’ve spent quite a lot of time in trailer parks, too, going through some stuff.”

While Ted Lasso hasn’t shied away from addressing its characters’ less lighthearted moments, the Apple TV+ series became a breakout hit for its feel-good tone. As Keeley Jones, Temple serves as the neon-lit heart of the show, but as she recalls her first interactions with executive producer and star Jason Sudeikis, she didn’t immediately see her place in the world of AFC Richmond.

“He sent me a text, and there was this moment where I thought, oh gosh, this is going to be awkward, because I’m pretty sure he has texted the wrong actress, and I’m going to have to write back and be like, ‘Yo, this is Juno Temple, I don’t know if you actually know who I am,’” she remembers.

Though Temple’s résumé contains plenty of the grim period dramas requisite for most British actors, some of her earliest credits include the St. Trinian’s movies and the Jack Black and Michael Cera vehicle Year One, so she might be selling herself a little short.

“And it wasn’t a mistake,” she continues. “And I think [Sudeikis] has this ability with a lot of people that were cast in the show to see something in all of us that we didn’t necessarily think we had in us at all. That being said, a lot of the times I’m telling jokes on Ted Lasso, I don’t know they’re a joke.”

Along with Temple’s real-life friendship with co-star Hannah Waddingham, no wonder her performance looks so natural. She can next be seen in the upcoming fifth season of Fargo.