December 5, 2022
Watch: Mayim Bialik Memorializes Co-Star Leslie Jordan in TikTok Video
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 2 MIN.
"Call Me Kat" star Mayim Bialik took to TikTok the day after the sitcom's Dec. 1 episode to memorialize co-star Leslie Jordan, EW reported. The episode was the last one the out comedian completed before his death on Oct. 24.
The episode, titled "Call Me Fancy Puffenstuff," was the eighth in the show's current third season, EW noted.
"Bialik recalled the 'incredibly special' time cast and crew had on set" in her TikTok video, EW detailed.
"It was our Thanksgiving episode," Bialik recounted. "We didn't know at the time that that was Leslie's last episode," she added, before going on to say that she has not been able to watch the episode yet because "I'm not ready" to see Jordan's swan song.
That episode marked the first time Jordan's character, Phil, shared a kiss with his new love interest, a man named Jalen, who is played by John Griffin. It was also a professional first for Jordan, being his "first on-screen kiss," Bialik noted.
"He and John Griffin, who plays his boyfriend on the show, were very specific about their appreciation for our writers' sensitivities in writing a gay couple that was navigating the newness of living a truly authentic out life," Bialik shared. "It was a very important episode for Leslie in particular."
Bialik's TikTok post was not the first tribute to Jordan; a few days after his death, during the show's Oct. 27 airing, the Fox network presented a supercut montage of moments from the openly gay comic's television appearances.
Viewers will discover how the show's writers have handled the character in the wake of Jordan's sudden death when the next episode airs on Dec. 8, the article said, and Bialik suggested that the series won't just drop any mention of the character after that.
"In the coming weeks you'll be hearing more about what we decided to do with Leslie's character," Bialik promised.
One of the show's producers, Jim Patterson, seemed to confirm this. EW reported that Patterson has teased that "Phil will live on forever and live his best and happiest life."
Watch Bialik's video below.
@mayimbialik Regarding Leslie Jordan's final Call Me Kat episode that aired last night. May his memory only be a blessing. We miss you, Leslie. 💕
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
