Keeley Hazell has revealed she came close to playing a leading role in Ted Lasso—a character directly inspired by her life and personality—before losing out to Juno Temple.
In her new memoir, Everyone’s Seen My Tits, Hazell detailed how Jason Sudeikis, the star and co-creator of the Apple TV+ comedy, first raised the idea. Hazell, who was previously linked to Sudeikis, said he envisioned a role named “Keeley” that mirrored her own name.
Hazell recalled meeting with Sudeikis during the early development of the project. “The part he had written for me” thrilled her with its potential. At the time, the series had not yet been picked up, but the chance of fronting a major television show was exhilarating. “The idea of me being a lead in a TV show was enough to make me wet my pants with excitement,” she wrote.
According to Hazell, she auditioned several times for the part. “According to J, I was at the top of the list, but casting wanted to see another scene,” she explained. For the final round, she read directly with Sudeikis.
Despite her hopes, Hazell ultimately learned she would not be cast. The role of Keeley Jones went to Juno Temple, who portrayed the character throughout the series from its launch in 2020 until its finale.
Hazell admitted the rejection hit her hard. “I felt like I’d been punched in the chest,” she wrote. She added, “Once I didn’t get cast as Keeley, I decided that acting could go f— itself.”
Although she did not secure the role created with her in mind, Hazell eventually appeared on the show in a smaller capacity. She played Bex, a recurring character who featured in several episodes.
Still, reminders of what might have been continued to follow her. Hazell recalled ordering food one day and giving her name to a server, only to hear, “Oh, Keeley, like the character from Ted Lasso!” She said her horrified expression was mistaken for confusion before the server asked if she had seen the show.
Reflecting on the experience, Hazell noted the irony in one of Keeley Jones’s running jokes. The fictional Keeley often described herself as being “sort of famous for being almost famous,” a sentiment Hazell felt captured her own situation with painful accuracy.
Though she missed the chance to play the character inspired by her, Hazell’s account sheds new light on the early development of one of television’s most beloved comedies and the personal cost of nearly becoming its star.