Television is a bit of a revolving door; when one series ends, it makes room for new and exciting shows within the same network. And perhaps no network is as good as this as HBO, which has a steady schedule of exciting TV shows airing all year around. One of the HBO's more long running series, Lena Dunham's dramedy Girls, will be airing its sixth and final season this year, and all the trade secrets and drama from the show are finally coming out. Shockingly, it turns out that one of the four titular girls actually tried to quit the gig.
Jemima Kirke has played the free spirited and somewhat unstable Jessa for Girls' long tenure. She and her costars recently spoke to the good folks at Glamour about the show's final season, as the premiere is a month away. It was here that Kirke revealed she tried to leave the show right before Season 2 began filming. After Lena Dunham dropped the bomb, Kirke elaborated, saying:
Season two was kind of traumatic for me. I think for everyone. And I know that I was a bit of a tyrant myself. Yeah. My sense of who I was and what I wanted was really thin. I really wasn't sure what the fuck I was doing.
Holy wow. This is sure to be pretty mind blowing news for Girls fans who couldn't imagine the show without the four young women. What exactly would Girls be without Jessa?
Jemima Kirke's desire to quit Girls before Season 2 actually makes a great deal of sense when you think about the context of the show. Season 1 ended with Jessa's surprise wedding to the absolutely horrendous Thomas-John. But when Season 2 picked up, Jessa was noticeably absent for the first episode or so. Lena Dunham and the other writers used Jessa's honeymoon as the reason for her absence, but perhaps it was actually a stalling technique as they attempted to talk Jemima Kirke off the ledge. It eventually worked, and Jessa has gradually become a larger role in the series.
The revelation that Jemima Kirke originally wanted to cut her time as Jessa down is also a mind blower when you think about her personal life. Kirke and creator/director/writer/actress Lena Dunham are actually childhood friends. Kirke appeared in Dunham's debut film Tiny Furniture, which served as the project that got Dunham the job at HBO through Judd Apatow. So while Jessa's absence would have been terrible, it would presumably have grave consequences on the duo's personal lives.
It should be interesting to see how Jessa continues to progress through the show's final season. Jessa's actions in Season 5 turned a lot of fans off from the character, as we saw her break the girl code and begin dating Hannah's ex Adam. The new couple were last seen having a massive argument and essentially destroying an apartment together. But Jessa also finally has direction in her life, so perhaps her budding career as a therapist will move forward.
Girls' final premiere episode will air February 12th on HBO.
