Abbott Elementary viral cold open was inspired by Sheryl Lee Ralph's real-life mix-up

Sweet baby Jesus and the grown one, too!

Sheryl Lee Ralph inspired a viral cold open in season 2 of Abbott Elementary. In episode two, "Wrong Delivery," Janine (Quinta Brunson) is determined to make Abbott look just as good as a nearby charter school. The episode opens with Ralph's fellow teacher Barbara mistakenly referring to white actors she believes are Black, such as Beverly Hills, 90210 alum Brian Austin Green, when she actually means means Brian Tyree Henry.

Gilles Mingasson/ABC Sheryl Lee Ralph and Quinta Brunson on 'Abbott Elementary'

During a joint appearance with Brunson and Lisa Ann Walter on The Kelly Clarkson Show on Tuesday, Ralph shared that creator and writer Brunson penned that cold open while taking cues from one of her real-life mixups. "I made one mistake!" the Emmy winner said. "When you hear the name Darren Star, tell me you don't think of a six-foot basketball player. Now you know Darren Star sounds like a Black man."

Star is not, in fact, a Black man, but the white TV director and producer who created shows Melrose Place, Sex and the City, and Emily in Paris, among others. Ralph also mistook actor Orlando Bloom, also white, for a Black man. "Okay, so I got it wrong," she said. "It was the wrong Orlando."

The cold open featured a number of comical mix ups on Barbara's part: Carrie Underwood? Kerry Washington, Jacob (Chris Perfetti) clarifies. Millie Bobby Brown? Bobby Brown, Walter's Melissa clarifies. Tommy Lee Jones? James Earl Jones, Ava (Janelle James) clarifies. Destiny's Child's Michelle Williams? Dawson's Creek's Michelle Williams, in a silly switch up.

Watch the clip from Ralph's interview with her costars above.

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