13 Of The Funniest Unscripted Quotes From TV Shows That Were 100% Improvised Right There On The Spot

Nick Miller from New Girl saying "Gave me cookie, got you cookie, man!" means even more to me now that I know it was an improvised moment.

All the shows we know and love have writers who expertly pull the strings behind the scenes, but sometimes the actor gets so in character while reading their written lines that they can't help but to break into a little improv. When it works, it really works, and the sprinkled in bits of ad-libs can end up being the most hilarious. Here are 13 of the funniest TV show moments that weren't scripted:

1. Sabrina Impacciatore improvised this zinger from White Lotus:

Rip Cord Productions / Via youtube.com

Our favorite British pig is out here catching strays on Season 2 of White Lotus. When Jennifer Coolidge's character, Tanya, arrives at an Italian resort, the resort manager, played by Sabrina Impacciatore went off script to deliver this iconic quote (and was thrilled when she found out that it made it into the final cut).

2. Matt Berry, who plays Laszlo Cravensworth in the satirical vampire show, What We Do in the Shadows, improvised this quote that ended up becoming a staple of the show:

FXP / Via Hulu

Vampire lore has become noticeably unhinged over the years, especially with Twilight adding "glittering in the sun" to the mix. There are truly no rules at this point, so vampire shows and movies have a lot of creative freedom with how they want their specific vampires portrayed. Audiences aren't fazed anymore because nothing is too ridiculous at this point. It's no surprise that a vampire yelling "BAT!!" to announce that it's time to, ya know, turn into a bat and fly away, seamlessly worked its way into the framework of the show after being ad-libbed by Matt Berry. 

3. Sheryl Lee Ralph blessed me with my new favorite exclamation when she improvised this quote from Abbott Elementary:

Delicious Non-Sequitur / Via Hulu

I can't even stub my toe and yell "SWEET BABY JESUS!" without adding "AND THE GROWN ONE, TOO!" after watching this scene from Abbott Elementary. This show has such strong writing as its backbone to begin with, but Sheryl Lee Ralph is so naturally funny that her ad-lib fits right in with the written script.  

4. In this scene from the finale of New Girl, Schmidt (played by Max Greenfield) describing Nick (played by Jake Johnson) was unscripted. It was genuinely just Max Greenfield describing Jake Johnson in the moment, and somehow, they both managed not to break character by bursting into laughter:

Elizabeth Meriwether Pictures

New Girl is one of those shows that allowed the actors a lot of freedom to throw in their own ad-libs here and there, but this scene with Nick and Schmidt from the finale episode was totally improvised. In the scene, we see a flashback of the day they moved into the loft. When Nick asks Schmidt to describe his perfect women "right off the jack," he was truly asking Max as the actor playing Schmidt to spew lines in character in real time. Max replied in true Schmidt fashion and expressed his undying love for Nick. I am a logical human being, so of course, I'm a Nick and Jess shipper...but I'd be lying if I didn't admit that Nick and Schmidt had just as much chemistry on screen, at least comedically. 

5. In another scene from New Girl, Nick gives Schmidt a cookie and improvises the quote, "Got me cookie, gave you cookie" which has been cemented in the hall of fame as one of the most popular lines from the entire show:

Elizabeth Meriwether Pictures

I'm so sorry, but I'm not done talking about New Girl yet. Honestly, I never will be. I can't even think about cookies without saying it. After Schmidt buys Nick a cookie simply because he was "thinking about him," Nick spirals into emotional turmoil while trying to understand this vulnerable act of friendship. It's a scene that fully encapsulates their entire relationship by perfectly juxtaposing Schmidt's sentimentality with Nick's skeptical nature. Even though Nick's emotional catharsis comes out as the gibberish, "Gave me cookie, got you cookie, man!" — it just makes so much sense for Nick's character because he's not great at expressing his emotions. There's a reason this quote always shows up in the Nick/Schmidt fan cams that constantly show up on my For You page. I'm not ashamed of my algorithm. 

6. I had no idea this scene from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia where Dennis is reading a speech that Charlie "wrote" was improvised:

RCG Productions, / Via Hulu

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia has a whoooole lot of improv, but this has gotta be my favorite bit. In this episode, Dennis and Charlie are running a scheme where Dennis is running for office, and Charlie (who uh, can't really read or write) "wrote" a speech for Dennis. Charlie Day explained on their podcast that a member of production had just written some nonsense on a piece of paper and Glenn Howerton (who plays Dennis) came up with the rest of the speech on the spot. It's one thing to improvise as your own character, but being able to effortlessly crank out an unscripted speech from another character's mind is next level. It's so funny and expertly executed. I'd vote for him.

7. Catherine O'Hara improvised one of the funniest running bits on the show. She wasn't directed to pronounce the word "baby" like "bebe," but I am soooo glad she did (for the culture):

Not a Real Company Productions / Via Hulu

Catherine O'Hara is the queen of delivery. The nuance she adds to each of her line deliveries as Moira Rose from Schitt's Creek is like watching a masterclass in stealing a scene.

8. Another improvisational moment that was 100% the choice of the actor has a great example in Will Friedle's "Feeny call" from Boy Meets World:

Michael Jacobs Productions Touchstone Television / Via youtube.com

The script never called for Eric Matthews to drag out Mr. Feeny's name in a sing-song fashion, but that didn't stop Will Friedle from turning it into one of the most memorable and funniest bits from the show. 

9. This scene from Modern Family where Mitchell and Cam accidentally lock Lily in the car was written to be cut off right after Mitchell says, "Did you lock the baby in the car?" but of course, Cam ad-libbing "I'M BREAKING THE WINDOW!" and sprinting toward the car made the final cut:

Lloyd-Levitan Productions

10. On Modern Family, the "gotta fix that step!" bit made its way from the first season to the last thanks to the improvisation of Ty Burrell who plays Phil Dunphy:

Lloyd-Levitan Productions / Via Hulu

This quick and genius improvised quote became such a long running gag that other characters got in on the action, too. That stair was NEVER truly fixed in all 11 seasons.

Well, there is an episode in the final season where Phil tries to fix it, but only makes it worse, and Claire ends up falling through the step entirely:

Lloyd-Levitan Productions / Via youtube.com

11. There's an unscripted moment in the episode of Seinfeld where Jerry is dating a woman whose name he can't recall. He tries to find creative ways for her to tell him, like by making conversation about how kids sometimes make fun of other kids because of their names:

NBC / Via getyarn.io

To this, the mystery named woman responds, "What do you expect when your name rhymes with a part of the female anatomy?" This isn't helpful at all, and leads the gang to brainstorm names to no avail — the crowd favorite, of course, being "Mulva." 

When the girlfriend catches Jerry going through her purse to find her ID with her name on it, she storms out. Only then does Jerry remember her name, and he yells it out the window:

NBC / Via getyarn.io

The name that the head writer, Larry David, had in mind did rhyme with the same part of the female anatomy. However, it was "Cloris" instead of Delores. The unscripted line from this episode of Seinfeld was actually a suggestion from an audience member during filming! Larry David liked it so much that they scrapped the original joke and went with the audience member's suggestion live on set.

12. Patton Oswalt appeared in a cameo on Parks and Recreation for one of their classically chaotic town hall scenes and was given the go-ahead to perform an improvised rant about Star Wars for a full eight minute monologue:

Universal Television / Via youtube.com

Give Patton Oswalt the rights to Star Wars, ya'll. He deserves it. This scene was filmed in 2013 and came straight from his own mind, but ironically, it ended up predicting a lot of what ended up actually happening in the Star Wars and Marvel universes in later years.

13. And finally, this list simply wouldn't be complete without Chris Pratt's improvised "network connectivity" joke on Parks and Recreation:

Universal Television / Via youtube.com

In the scene, Leslie is under the weather, and Andy offers help by looking up her symptoms online, only to say that after searching her problem, it appears she may have "network connectivity issues." In an interview, a writer on the show said that it's their favorite quote from the series.

What was your favorite or most surprising unscripted moment from this list? Do you know any improvised moments from your favorite TV shows that should be on this list? Let me know in the comments!