Bullseye with Jesse Thorn D'Arcy Carden
Apr 3, 2026
D'Arcy Carden, actress and comedian known for Janet on The Good Place and roles on Barry and A League of Their Own. She talks about creating Janet's voice and how that role shifted her career. She discusses intense baseball training and reuniting with Abbi Jacobson. She also shares stories of working on Sunny Nights and early improv days with Jesse.
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Team Training Created Real Baseball Chemistry
- D'Arcy Carden credits ensemble preparation for authentic team chemistry on A League of Their Own.
- The cast trained with a real coach (Justine Siegel) and practiced baseball 7–9 AM three days a week to build skill and rapport before shooting.
Pick Roles That Contrast With Your Breakout
- Do deliberately pursue roles that contrast strongly with your breakout character to avoid typecasting.
- Carden followed Ted Danson's advice to pick roles as different from Janet as possible, then accepted Greta on trust in Abby Jacobson.
Auditioning Janet With Dummy Sides
- Carden describes auditioning for Janet with 'dummy sides' and no clear show concept, so she focused on being the best version of herself.
- She accepted she likely wouldn't get the role but wanted to make Mike Schur remember her for future parts.