Tina Fey's beloved NBC series 30 Rock hosted one high-profile guest star after another during its seven seasons from 2006 to 2013.
While not a household name on par with movie stars like Matt Damon, Julianne Moore, or Salma Hayek, Cristin Milioti guest-starred in the episode “TGS Hates Women” as Abby Flynn, a nemesis of Fey's Liz Lemon, who l ' made him a fan favorite with a pitch-perfect performance as he delivers lines of dialogue like this: “This whole sexy baby thing ain't an act! I'm a really sexy baby.”
In fact, it's that phrase that returned to the zeitgeist two years ago, when Taylor Swift released “Anti-Hero” from her album, Midnight. The superstar herself praised the song, which catapulted to number one, “as one of my favorite songs she's ever written.” It contains the line: “Sometimes I feel like everyone's a sexy kid / And I'm a freak on the hill.” Needless to say, the Internet exploded with fan theories about Swift's supposed love for the zany sitcom and whether the lyrics were actually a reference to Milioti's joke.
Milioti has now intervened on the mystery.
During an appearance on SiriusXM The Jess Cagle Show with Julia Cunningham to promote her critically acclaimed role as Sofia Falcone in Max's The Penguin alongside Colin Farrell, the veteran actress said she was definitely aware of the vortex surrounding the text.
“When that album came out, my phone literally blew up with people asking me about it, and I don't know. I mean, in my wildest way, that would be a compliment. I wish it were true. I have no confirmation whether it is,” she explained. But if the rumors are true that Swift loves the show and has been binging it as comfort TV during the pandemic, she has a friend in Milioti. “It's a show I binge watch if I'm on location somewhere or if it's like a cold, dark winter. I can watch it over and over and over again. I watched that show in real time every week and was obsessed with that show.
“TGS Hates Women” stars Milioti as Abby Flynn, a guest writer hired by Liz Lemon to prove that she, well, doesn't hate women. However, when Abby turns out to be a sexpot who distracts the men on the staff – everyone from John Lutz's Lutz to Alec Baldwin's Jack Donaghy – Liz tries to set her straight. In the process, Liz reveals her true identity as Abby Grossman and confronts her in the writers' room. The plan backfires when Abby says she created the role of sexy child only to hide from an abusive ex-husband.
When Milioti landed the role, she “could barely speak” because she was so excited as a fan of the show. “I remember being on that set and Tina Fey, who was so kind to me, showing me the different sets. She was like, “This is Jack Donaghy's office,” and I was just trying to be so cool and calm about it being like, “Oh, in the writers' room.” Yes. OK. Done. Yeah,' and like, I was just seeing how it all worked. Everyone on that show was so incredibly kind to me, and I felt like I had won some contest or something.
The feeling continued for Milioti, who praises the show as one of the proudest moments of her still-rising career. “[I was] basically in my underwear in New York on my favorite TV show, I got to play this character,” he recalled of the “sexy baby” scene filmed in the park in front of Fey. “I was so excited to create that voice and have that crazy wig and those crazy costumes I could wear. That's one of the things I'm most proud of, without a doubt. I really enjoyed that show and it was a really gripping time.