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Brooklyn Nine-Nine: The Role Chelsea Peretti Originally Auditioned For
Chelsea Peretti delivered an iconic performance as Gina on Brooklyn Nine-Nine, but she originally auditioned for a different character on the show.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine: The Role Chelsea Peretti Originally Auditioned For

Chelsea Peretti is widely known for playing Gina Linetti on Brooklyn Nine-Nine, but that wasn’t the role she originally auditioned for. A big highlight of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, the police sitcom that ran for eight seasons, is its talented cast. Brooklyn Nine-Nine featured a variety of iconic and hilarious characters, including Peretti’s role as Gina, but the show almost turned out differently.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine focused on the professional and personal lives of the 99th Precinct’s staff, including Gina Linetti, who was Jake Peralta’s (Andy Samberg) childhood friend and served as a civilian administrator. Gina became an iconic character, coining plenty of memorable quotes throughout the series and forming a great duo with Captain Holt (Andre Braugher). Gina left Brooklyn Nine-Nine in season 6 but her impact on the show remained, to the point where she returned in Brooklyn Nine-Nine season 8 as a guest star.

Before landing a role on Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Chelsea Peretti had a string of acting credits on shows such as Kroll Show, The Sarah Silverman Program, and China, IL, as well as writing credits for Parks and Recreation and Saturday Night Live. In an interview back in 2015 (via HuffPost), Chelsea Peretti revealed some behind-the-scenes details behind her Brooklyn Nine-Nine audition. She admitted that she originally auditioned for “the part of Rosa, which was not called Rosa yet.” However, Peretti did not end up getting the part, and the role eventually went to Stephanie Beatriz, who almost played Amy on Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

Why Chelsea Peretti Was Cast As Gina Linetti In Brooklyn Nine-Nine

The role of Gina was actually created specifically for Chelsea Peretti and didn’t exist in the original plan for Brooklyn Nine-Nine. In the interview, Peretti said that she was called and told that they would write a part for her. Peretti was familiar with Dan Goor and Michael Schur since she previously worked with them on Parks and Recreation, so they knew her well enough to base many of Gina’s characteristics on Peretti’s own personality. Gina is hilarious and Brooklyn Nine-Nine definitely would not be the same if her character didn’t exist. Additionally, Stephanie Beatriz did a great job as the deadpan Rosa on Brooklyn Nine-Nine and it’s difficult to imagine anyone else playing the role as effectively.

While it would’ve been interesting to see how Chelsea Peretti would play a role like Rosa, it’s good that she didn’t get the role she initially auditioned for. Gina Linetti is an iconic character who adds a lot to the world of Brooklyn Nine-Nine and writing that character for Chelsea Peretti allowed the comedian to show off her vibrant personality. Brooklyn Nine-Nine was made all the better by Chelsea Peretti and Stephanie Beatriz getting cast in their respective roles of Gina and Rosa.