Mindy Kaling Realizes the Paparazzi Are More Interested in Rihanna Than Her

Photo by: Lloyd Bishop/NBC

Mindy Kaling decided to use her time off from running her show The Mindy Project to take part in the all-female remake of Ocean’s Eleven (called Ocean’s Eight, because you need three less women to do men’s jobs), but she’s quickly learning that the world of filmmaking is a little different from the world of TV, particularly when you consider the stars working with her. In her chat with Seth Meyers on Late Night, she shared some thoughts about what it’s like to appear alongside such luminaries as Cate Blanchett, Sandra Bullock, Anne Hathaway, and a little-known singer by the name of Rihanna.

Highlights of Kaling’s experience apparently include being mistaken for Sandra Bullock’s assistant, and realizing that global pop stars like Rihanna attract slightly more attention from the paparazzi than her. Despite her efforts to look snazzy and avoid being accused of having substance problems because she’s not smiling enough, the paps just weren’t that interested. Even Oscar-winner Anne Hathaway can’t compete with tabloids’ insatiable need for photos of the singer, which they wanted even though Rihanna was wearing a head to toe jacket. See the whole exchange below.

The film is set for a 2018 release, and Kaling’s fellow Mass. native and Ocean’s Eleven star Matt Damon has said he’s filming a cameo in the movie. But it wasn’t all celebrity talk during Kaling’s visit to the show. She and Meyers took the time to film an important segment about how different things are these days. The important gossip is about Kardashians instead of Paris Hilton, no one is saying “Whazzzzuuuup” anymore, and even the way we endlessly share pointless details about our lives is different. It was just a simpler time, you know?