She meant to tweet behind the scenes trivia along with the BBC3 airings, but by the third episode, she completely forgot the show was even on and went to an escape room with friends instead.
in March, Matafeo’s mostly been laying low. I really love the show.”ĭuring the limbo period between Season 2 premiering in the U.K.
“But it’s also lovely when you’re promoting something you’ve poured a lot of time and effort and love into like ‘Starstruck.’ I am proud of it. “At some point, you do get fucking sick of the sound of your own voice,” Matafeo admits. Suddenly, Matafeo’s years of self-promotion as a standup comic got a new purpose as she became the relatable face of the next evolution of romantic comedies.
It’s no surprise that Matafeo - the show’s creator, star, and co-writer - subsequently earned a whole new level of attention than ever before (such as, for instance, a spot on Variety’s list of Best TV Performances).
Matafeo’s vivacious performance as Jessie, a bright and wary woman who accidentally sleeps with a surprisingly lowkey movie star (played by Patel) before even more accidentally falling for him, felt like a breath of fresh air. The show’s first season debuted in 2021 to rapturous reviews that hailed it as one of the best romantic comedies in years, on television or otherwise. “I just thought she was really funny, and really charming.” “I was a fan of her standup, and had been to her shows a couple of times,” he says. “I loved films, and I loved drama, but I always sort of gravitated towards funnier roles,” Matafeo realizes now, because as a teen, “taking yourself seriously is fucking embarrassing.”Īfter moving to the U.K., she won the Edinburgh Comedy Award for her 2018 special “Horndog” (now available to stream on HBO Max) and converted new fans as a contestant on the beloved game show “Taskmaster.” Her “Starstruck” co-star Nikesh Patel, for one, knew of Matafeo well before auditioning for her show.
Growing up in New Zealand, she obsessed over “Flight of the Conchords,” wore out Mitch Hedberg CDs, and pored over her library’s copy of Jerry Seinfeld’s “Seinlanguage.” She then wrote her own standup set for a local comedy festival and worked at an Auckland club for more chances to perform. As she did on that stage, Matafeo’s spent most of her life finding comedy wherever she can.