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Melissa McCarthy talks 'sentimental,' 'overwhelming' return to 'Gilmore Girls'

Melissa McCarthy is bringing Sookie St. James back to Stars Hollow, and that's enough to make anyone feel a little sentimental — even McCarthy.
/ Source: TODAY

Melissa McCarthy is bringing Sookie St. James back to Stars Hollow. That's enough to make any "Gilmore Girls" fan shed a happy tear — until recently, viewers had reason to believe the series reboot wouldn't include the beloved character. And it's enough to get McCarthy feeling a little misty, too.

Melissa McCarthy
Actress Melissa McCarthy attends 2016 Time 100 Gala, Time's Most Influential People In The World red carpet at Jazz At Lincoln Center at the Times Warner Center on April 26, 2016 in New York City.Getty Images

MORE: Melissa McCarthy: I'm returning to 'Gilmore Girls' and it's 'gonna be amazing'

“I got so sentimental," she told Entertainment Tonight about her recent return to the set. "I stopped by about two weeks ago, I think, and just saw the sets and saw everybody there — it kind of felt like we didn't skip a beat.”

Speaking at the Time 100 Gala, the big-and-small-screen star added, "It was a little overwhelming."

But she also said it was "the absolute right thing to do" and "the exact right time" to do it.

Gilmore Girls
Medium shot in wedding dress store of Lauren Graham as Lorelai and Melissa McCarthy as Sookie.Patrick Ecclesine / Warner Bros./Getty Images

MORE: 'Gilmore Girls' guys reunite: Luke and Jess are back together in Stars Hollow

The timing is great because, even though the show ended in 2007, it seems to be more popular than ever.

“I talk to so many different people that didn't watch it or weren't old enough. Now they watch it,” she said. “I don't think many shows develop an even bigger fan base once they go off the air. And I think that the show, there's been a bit of magic with it.”

Gilmore Girls
Patrick Ecclesine / Warner Bros. via Getty Images

And she's happy to be part of that magic again.

"There was the longest time when it was just not going to work out, schedule-wise," McCarthy told Us Weekly at the same event. "Then once we decided, like, 'Is there any possible way?' Something big fell out for me [and] something changed for [the producers]."

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