Celebrity Funny Ladies We Want More of in 2012 From Zooey Deschanel to Melissa McCarthy, check out the women who always leave us in stitches By Kiran Hefa Published on January 2, 2011 06:00 AM Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos 01 of 08 ZOOEY DESCHANEL FOX Following her standout role in 2009's (500) Days of Summer, indie darling Deschanel entered the mainstream last fall as the "adorkable" Jess Day on FOX's New Girl. As the series continues its successful freshman season in 2012, expect even more embarrassing but endearing moments from the multitalented actress, who also makes up one-half of folk-rock duo She amp Him. 02 of 08 MELISSA MCCARTHY Dana Edelson/NBC/AP She scored at the box office with Bridesmaids, brought home an outstanding lead actress Emmy for Mike & Molly, and capped off 2011 by hosting Saturday Night Live. This year, Entertainment Weekly's Queen of Comedy continues her comedic tour de force with an appearance in the Knocked Up sequel The Big 40, and she's slated to reunite with Bridesmaids costar Jon Hamm for a film in which she'll play his love interest. 03 of 08 TINA FEY Ali Goldstein/NBC Last year proved to be full of milestones for Fey, who published her memoir, the bestseller Bossypants, and welcomed her second child, daughter Penelope. But this month, the actress returns to her day job when 30 Rock bows with its highly anticipated sixth season. Oh how we've missed you, Liz Lemon! 04 of 08 EMMA STONE Everett In addition to her acclaimed dramatic turn in last year's The Help, Stone charmed audiences as Ryan Gosling's object of affection in the comedy Crazy, Stupid, Love and even made a hilarious cameo as Justin Timberlake's John Mayer-loving ex-girlfriend in Friends with Benefits. In 2012, Stone will bring her sassy sensibility to her biggest role to date: love interest to Peter Parker in The Amazing Spider-Man. 05 of 08 MINDY KALING Ron Tom/NBC/AP Having penned and directed many episodes of The Office, Kaling, who plays Kelly Kapoor, gave Fey a run for her money with the November release of her book, Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns). Her star will continue to rise in the New Year with her role in Jason Segel's The Five-Year Engagement and a still-in-development animated NBC series she will both write and voice. 06 of 08 KAT DENNINGS Sonja Flemming/CBS Fast-talking Dennings may have played sidekick to Natalie Portman in Thor, but she steals the spotlight as street-smart Max on CBS's 2 Broke Girls. With half a season still to go, expect the sharp-tongued waitress to serve up even more quote-worthy one-liners at the expense of clueless heiress Caroline (Beth Behrs, left). 07 of 08 CHRISTINA APPLEGATE Trae Patton/NBC In a case of art imitating life, Applegate revived her career with a pitch-perfect turn as a mom to a newborn in the NBC sitcom Up All Night – a role close to the heart of the mother of 11-month-old Sadie. Look for more of the show's biggest laughs to come from Applegate's real-life mommy moments, which she's credited as the inspiration for many of her scenes. 08 of 08 KRISTEN WIIG Universal Wiig stepped out of the Saturday Night Live shadows when she cowrote and starred in Bridesmaids, which broke box-office records and paved the way for future female-driven comedies. Besides continuing her reign as SNL's go-to gal in 2012, Wiig will also dabble in drama with the upcoming movie Imogene.