New York University in popular culture
New York University (NYU) has been the subject of numerous aspects of popular culture. NYU is often portrayed in a variety of television shows, motion pictures, literature, and other media. This is a partially sorted list of NYU's representation in various films and television programs. Fictional NYU students and faculty include Kramer's intern Darren in Seinfeld, who helps him run "Kramerica Industries";[1] a student reporter in a different episode of Seinfeld who interviews Jerry; Theo Huxtable (Malcolm-Jamal Warner) from The Cosby Show, who graduates from NYU in the series finale;[2] Ross Geller (David Schwimmer) from Friends, who becomes an NYU professor in Season 6;[3] Character Tom Collins from Rent, who taught there; Bud Fox (Charlie Sheen) in the movie Wall Street (1987); Finch (Eddie Kaye Thomas) from the American Pie films; Paul Tannek (Jason Biggs) in Loser (2000); Alex Foreman (Scarlett Johansson) in In Good Company (2005); Jack Campbell (Nicolas Cage) in The Family Man (2000); Céline (Julie Delpy) in the Before trilogy; Clark Kellogg (Matthew Broderick) in The Freshman (1990); Justin Cobb (Lou Taylor Pucci) in the film version of Thumbsucker (2005), who secretly applies and is accepted to NYU; the songwriter Albert Peterson in the musical Bye Bye Birdie who promises his sweetheart Rosie to start studying at NYU and become an English teacher; and the characters Blair Waldorf, Dan Humphrey, Vanessa Abrams and Georgina Sparks in Gossip Girl.[4] In the 1998 film Stepmom (1998 film), the character Isabel (Julia Roberts), in a scene says that she attended NYU.[5] In the 1999 film The Bone Collector, an NYU student gets abducted. In the Hindi film Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na, the lead character decides to go to the USA to study film-making at New York University.[6] In the film, Death Wish (2018 film), Jordan Kersey, the daughter of Paul and Lucy, gets accepted to and attends NYU.[7]
In addition, the campus of NYU has been the backdrop for various pieces of fiction: Grace Adler's office in Will & Grace is portrayed in the show as being in the Puck Building, home to NYU's Wagner School; Henry James' novel Washington Square is set around the NYU area; and Rose of Washington Square (1939), 13 Washington Square (1928), Annie Hall (1977), When Harry Met Sally... (1989), Tithonus (The X-Files) (1999), I Am Legend (2007), August Rush (2007), Remember Me (2010), Step Up 3-D (2010) and The Sorcerer's Apprentice (2010) are centered on the NYU campus. In Ralph Bakshi's animated feature Fritz The Cat (1972), the dormitory that Fritz burns down is clearly supposed to be NYU's Weinstein Hall, located at 5-11 University Place near the northeast corner of Washington Square Park. The Warner Brothers show Felicity was set at the "University of New York", clearly modeled after NYU. NYU is also featured in the TV show Californication.[8]
List of fictional characters
The following are characters in film, television, literature, and other media that have a connection to the university:
| Name | Portrayal | Notability | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Princess Daisy | played by Samantha Mathis | Paleontology student in Super Mario Bros. | |
| Isabel | played by Julia Roberts | in Stepmom (1998 film) | [5] |
| Darin, Kramer's intern | played by Jarrad Paul | in Seinfeld TV series | |
| James Dalton | played by Patrick Swayze | "The Cooler" at The Double Deuce in Road House | |
| Ross Geller, professor of paleontology | played by David Schwimmer | in the TV show Friends | |
| Bud Fox | played by Charlie Sheen | main character in Wall Street | |
| Charlie | played by Charlie Sheen | in TV show Spin City | |
| Paul Finch | played by Eddie Kaye Thomas | in the American Pie films | |
| Victor Ward | in Glamorama by Bret Easton Ellis | ||
| Denise Fleming | played by Lauren Ambrose | in the film Can't Hardly Wait | |
| Emma Hayes | played by Kerri Medders | in CBS SEAL Team | |
| Tom Collins | originated by Jesse L. Martin | NYU professor in the musical Rent | |
| Fritz the Cat | voiced by Skip Hinnant | in the film directed by Ralph Bakshi | |
| Theo Huxtable | played by Malcolm-Jamal Warner | in The Cosby Show | |
| Dr. Guy Luthan | played by Hugh Grant | in Extreme Measures (NYU Med Student) | |
| Jack Campbell | played by Nicolas Cage | in The Family Man | |
| Alvy Singer | played Woody Allen | in Annie Hall | |
| Dalton | played by Patrick Swayze | in Road House graduated from NYU with a degree in philosophy | |
| Alex Foreman | played by Scarlett Johansson | in In Good Company (2004) | |
| Dr. Roy Tam | played by Sab Shimono | is an NYU science professor in The Shadow (1994) | |
| Céline | played by Julie Delpy | attended NYU between Before Sunrise (1995) and Before Sunset (2004) | |
| Will Truman | played by Eric McCormack | in Will and Grace | |
| Blair Waldorf | played by Leighton Meester | in Gossip Girl | |
| Dan Humphrey | played by Penn Badgley | in Gossip Girl | |
| Vanessa Abrams | played by Jessica Szohr | in Gossip Girl | |
| Georgina Sparks | played by Michelle Trachtenberg | in Gossip Girl | |
| Olivia Burke | played by Hilary Duff | in Gossip Girl | |
| Em Lewin | played by Kristen Stewart | in Adventureland | |
| Tyler Hawkins | played by Robert Pattinson | in Remember Me | |
| Ally Craig | played by Emilie De Ravin | in Remember Me | |
| Robert "Moose" Alexander III | played by Adam G. Sevani | in Step Up 3D | |
| Camille Gage | played by Alyson Stoner | in Step Up 3D | |
| Topanga Lawrence | played by Danielle Fishel | in Boy Meets World ends up with a scholarship to NYU Law in Season 7 | |
| Shoshanna Shapiro | played by Zosia Mamet | in Girls | |
| Grace | played by Selena Gomez | in Monte Carlo | |
| Naomi | played by Victoria Justice | in Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List | |
| Ely | played by Pierson Fodé | in Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List | |
| Ravi | the unseen intern in Oh, Hello on Broadway | ||
| Christine "Lady Bird" McPherson | played by Saoirse Ronan | in Lady Bird. Ronan was nominated for Best Actress at the 90th Academy Awards, for this role. | |
| Jordan Kersey | played by Camila Morrone | in Death Wish. | [9] |
| Hope Shlottman | played by Erin Moriarty (actress) | NYU student and track star in Jessica Jones (TV series) | |
| Harvey Reginald Specter | played by Gabriel Macht | in Suits (U.S. TV series) | |
| Rachel Chu | played by Constance Wu | NYU economics professor in novel and film adaptation of Crazy Rich Asians | |
| Nick Young | played by Henry Golding (actor) | NYU history professor in novel and film adaptation of Crazy Rich Asians | |
| Mr. Antolini | NYU Professor in The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger | ||
| Payton Hobart | played by Ben Platt (actor) | NYU student in The Politician (TV series) | |
| Bill Gambini | played by Ralph Macchio (actor) | NYU student in My Cousin Vinny |
References
- Pritch. "Darren the Intern - The Voice". Kramers Apartment. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
- Weber, Bruce (1992-03-07). "Eventually, All Things End, Even a Big Hit Like 'Cosby'". NYTimes.com. New York City; Astoria (Nyc). Retrieved 2016-02-14.
- "Friends - Season 6, Episode 4: The One Where Joey Loses His Insurance". TV.com. Retrieved 2016-02-14.
- "New York University - March Madness: NYU Fictional Alumni Face-Off". nyu.edu. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
- "Great Fictional Characters of NYU". Nyulocal.com. 2010-10-28. Retrieved 2016-02-14.
- http://jamiespointofview.blogspot.com/2009/04/movie-review-jaane-tuya-jaane-na.html
- https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/death-wish-review-1089856
- "Campuses Where Movies Were Filmed". collegexpress.com. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
- https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/death-wish-review-1089856