One of award-winning actress Brie Larson’s most widely-known roles is in 21 Jump Street. In the film, she plays Molly Tracey, the girlfriend of Eric Molson (played by Dave Franco), and eventual love interest for Schmidt/Doug McQuaid (played by Jonah Hill).
Molly typically acted as the straight person in comedic scenes, grounding scenes in reality as other characters acted weird and even a little bit crazy. That isn’t to say that Brie Larson wasn’t funny in the film. Her character’s humor stemmed more from wit and, for the most part, subtlety in her performance, though there were a few instances where she was able to act crazy. From subtle wit to outright crazy, here are Brie Larson’s ten funniest scenes in 21 Jump Street.
Smacking Scott At Schmidt And Jenko’s Party
This moment was quick because of all the action around it. Scott, a student from rival school Kennedy High, came to Schmidt and Jenko’s party unannounced to buy H.F.S., the drug for which Schmidt and Jenko were undercover, from Eric, a confirmed dealer.
Schmidt ended up fighting Scott as a means to gain Eric’s trust. During the fight, the two accidentally moved toward the wall where Molly was talking to someone. Scott hit her and her friend when he missed Schmidt, and she retaliated with a hit of her own.
Her Banter With Schmidt Before The Peter Pan Premiere
Schmidt and Molly were cast as Peter and Wendy in the school play. The afternoon of opening night, they flirted with each other while getting ready. Molly initiated the flirtations by jokingly apologizing for potentially puking on Schmidt and the set while on stage, due to nerves.
Then, Schmidt asked if his Peter Pan costume was too sexy and Molly asked him to pull up a pant leg in order to see if it was. Upon Schmidt pulling up the pant leg, she confirmed that the Peter Pan costume was, in fact, too sexy.
When She Greeted Schmidt With A Big Hug
Schmidt and Eric arrived at Eric’s house to hang out with friends while playing music by the fire and eat Taco Bell. Molly ran to greet Schmidt by giving him a big hug.
The hug resulted in Schmidt feeling awkward, as shown by his response in which he rambled about the hug being bigger than he expected it to be. What probably made it worse was that she gave Schmidt this hug before even acknowledging her boyfriend, Eric, who was also there. Thankfully Eric was greeting another friend and paid no mind.
Her Kiss With Schmidt Making A Third-Wheel Out Of An EMT
During the resolution of the film, while Molly was being treated for injuries by an EMT, Schmidt apologized to her for lying to her about being a cop and telling her she was right to be mad at him while also calling himself an ahole. She responded at first with a blank face, saying, “Thank you for saving my life, ahole,” before breaking into a smile and pulling him in for a kiss.
The camera focused on the kiss but eventually widened the shot to show the EMT officer still standing near them while they kissed. The EMT awkwardly excused himself and then left the two alone.
Her Response To Schmidt Bringing Up Billiam Willingham
During Schmidt’s first day undercover and back at high school, he saw Molly from afar and thought she was cute. He later had a drama class with her where the class was holding auditions for the titular role in Peter Pan. It was implied that Billiam Willingham was supposed to be Peter Pan before overdosing on H.F.S.
When Willingham’s name was brought up, Schmidt used the subject as an opportunity to talk to Molly by saying it was sad that he died because he was talented. Molly replied by asking him if Billiam weren’t talented, his death would be less sad. After Schmidt grew flustered, Molly admitted to only saying it to mess with him.
Jokingly Reminding Schmidt She’s A Girl
During the hangout where Molly greeted Schmidt with a bigger hug than expected, Molly and Schmidt found themselves alone, talking on the couch. Molly tells Schmidt that he’s a good guy and Schmidt replied that he felt the same way about her, except “girl version” because she’s “a girl.”
Molly laughed at Schmidt’s awkward rambling and confirmed that she is a girl, and wore a dress so that she could remind him. With fewer people conforming to the gender binary and increased awareness of other cultures in today’s society, Molly’s joke is less funny because wearing a dress does not automatically mean “girl.” What is funny about the scene is how easily and quickly she rolled with what Schmidt was saying.
Her Callback To Captain Dickson’s Thoughts On The Piñata
While in a meeting with Schmidt and Captain Dickson (played by Ice Cube), Jenko reported that he had intel on Eric delivering a piñata to an unknown person, potentially the supplier. Captain Dickson, thrown off by the piñata and its role, asked if it was code for a “sex thing.”
Later, after Jenko saw Eric carrying an actual piñata, he told Schmidt, who was getting ready for Peter Pan with Molly, that he saw the piñata. He and Schmidt repeatedly said the word, which confused Molly. She then asked if “piñata” was a “sex thing,” as a callback to Dickson’s line.
Molly High On H.F.S. During Prom
In spite of being expelled and kicked out of Jump Street, Schmidt and Jenko decided to still go to prom to find the supplier since their cover had not been blown yet. Schmidt ran into Molly at prom and she was high from taking H.F.S. This scene was one of the moments where Molly was no longer the straight character and instead got to act crazy and weird because of the drugs in her system.
This was apparent in her body language, which was very loose, as well as her slurred words and constant smiling until Schmidt told her the truth about being undercover. She also said contradicting things to Schmidt before his confession like telling him she was still mad at him for ruining Peter Pan but also asking him to dance with her.
Molly On Stage Four Of Her H.F.S. High
Stage Four of being high on H.F.S. is called “Fck yeah, Motherfcker.” It usually resulted in high energy and being excitable. Because of Schmidt telling her the truth about his identity, Molly became angry and went to confront him while he and Jenko were infiltrating a drug deal. Through her confrontation, she blew his and, by extension, Jenko’s covers, which the two tried to pass off as Molly calling Schmidt odd-sounding insults.
Molly was initially locked out of the room but was able to break in and started pushing everyone, including the drug dealers, around in her anger. Mr. Walters (played by Rob Riggle) a teacher and a drug dealer held onto her, but she tried fighting his hold. She eventually passed out as she entered Stage Five: Asleepyness.
When She Was Passed Out In Mr. Walters’s Car
After Molly had passed out from her high and all of the dealers were on the run, Mr. Walters took her and Eric to his car to try to get away from Schmidt and Jenko. Mr. Walters did not secure her in a seatbelt, resulting in her flopping all around the car in the backseat as Mr. Walters tried to evade arrest.
What made this moment even funnier was Mr. Walters asking both Eric and Molly how they were doing in the back, even though Molly could not answer and was clearly flailing around. Brie Larson nailed the physicality that comes from being passed out and unsecured in a fast-moving vehicle.
