Ina Garten on ‘Gilmore Girls’? Amy Sherman-Palladino & Daniel Palladino Reveal It Almost Happened

Prime Video‘s new series Étoile keeps with Amy Sherman-Palladino and Daniel Palladino‘s tradition by incorporating pop culture references and even some big cameos throughout the Prime Video show’s first season.

As viewers see, David Byrne of Talking Heads fame makes a cameo as himself in a Zoom conversation with choreographer Tobias Bell (Gideon Glick), and fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi portrays himself as a moderator in a conversation with star ballerina Cheyenne (Lou de Laâge). P!nk was also mentioned but not seen during a press conference scene in the new show.

“Isaac’s my new best friend, so I wanted him in Paris with us,” Sherman-Palladino explains of the inclusion of Mizrahi. “We did it on Gilmore [Girls], and we dropped what we could on Maisel, but you had to be in the 1950s to know what you’re talking about,” she adds of making pop culture references onscreen.

“David Byrne is doing all sorts of Broadway work now, and so he’s a natural to pull into this universe,” she adds. “So whatever felt real for the show… we don’t do it just to do it.” As viewers of those shows will recall, Étoile‘s Kirby played a version of real-life comedian Lenny Bruce in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and several famous faces portrayed themselves in Gilmore Girls, among which included the likes of Madeleine Albright.

@gilmoregirls I am always asking myself WWTBFCD honestly. #GilmoreGirls ♬ original sound – Gilmore Girls

But there is one celebrity who gets a name-drop in Étoile that Sherman-Palladino and Palladino are particularly interested in getting onto their shows, and that would be Ina Garten, best known for her cooking series Barefoot Contessa. Her name is mentioned, along with her husband Jeffrey, as attendees of the ballet in Paris. Sherman-Palladino and Palladino previously referenced her on Gilmore Girls, even coining the acronym, WWTBCD (“What Would the Barefoot Contessa Do?”).

“Ina Garten has an apartment in Paris. I never saw her. I looked, I scouted, I stalked. She wasn’t around when we were there, but maybe next time,” Sherman-Palladino shares, lamenting the loss of a potential cameo.

“We need Ina to reach out to us very desperately. We’ve been wanting to meet her,” Palladino explains, revealing, “We tried to get her on the Gilmore Girls [A Year in the Life].”

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“We almost got her on Gilmore Girls, and it didn’t work out,” Sherman-Palladino chimes in.

“She was busy… so we are going to continue to hound that woman,” Palladino concludes, hinting that it’s this duo’s dream and goal to get the famous chef on their show.

What do you think of a potential team-up between the TV duo and Ina Garten? Let us know in the comments below and stay tuned for more on Étoile as Season 2 takes shape.

Étoile, Season 1, Streaming now, Prime Video