A new Zooey Deschanel movie came out last weekend. But is it the one where she plays a “Manic Pixie Dream Girl” opposite Paul Dano or the one where she plays a “Manic Pixie Dream Girl” opposite Joseph Gordon-Levitt? It’s the former, and it’s called Gigantic, which is also not to be confused with this coming week’s new DVD release, Yes Man, in which she plays a “Manic Pixie Dream Girl” opposite Jim Carrey.

Sure, Deschanel has range and talent (see this fan-made montage of some of her more varied performances), but she also has a certain repetitive nature to her characters. And this “Manic Pixie Dream Girl” nature became all the more confusing recently when trailers for Gigantic and (500) Days of Summer (the Gordon-Levitt one, which is actually her second romantic pairing with the actor) appeared online around the same time. Maybe instead of worrying about people confusing her for Katy Perry, the actress should worry more about people confusing her characters and films for each other.

Or, maybe not. Plenty of us can’t get enough of Deschanel’s quirky, free-spirited performances. In his Yes Man review, Roger Ebert noted that two critics proposed marriage to the character at the end of the film. We wouldn’t go that far, but we have crushed on the actress since All the Real Girls and haven’t yet gotten sick of her or her similar, typecast roles. In fact, to us, the problem is not that indie films too often employ the MPDG character; it’s that they don’t cast Deschanel for every such part. So, instead of wishing she’d broaden her career to include other types of characters (it didn’t work well for her with The Happening, after all), we’ve selected ten MPDG characters that she should have additionally played.

“Polly Prince” in Along Came Polly (John Hamburg, 2004)

As much as it would upset us to see Zooey Deschanel paired up with Ben Stiller, there’s no denying that this character is the typical ZD MPDG role. And ZD’s Good Girl costar, Jennifer Aniston, is absolutely wrong for the part. The only reason that ZD wouldn’t fit is that Polly is supposed to be the same age as Stiller’s character. But if that minor plot point were changed… Or, if Stiller’s character was recast with a younger, and funnier actor…

“Amelie Poulain” in Amelie (Jean-Pierre Jeunet, 2001)

Don’t kill us (or comment without reading further). What we mean with this selection is that if there were to be a Hollywood remake of the film, ZD should be the star. She may not be that comparable to Audrey Tautou, but she’d be able to make the character her own so that the remake couldn’t be too comparable either. She wouldn’t be better or worse, just different. Of course, the original Amelie was successful enough in the U.S. that it will likely never be remade. Another French film that will never be remade is Pierrot le fou, but if someone in Hollywood gets the insane idea to redo Godard’s classic, we’d also like to suggest ZD for that film’s MPDG role, originated by Anna Karina.

“Lucy Reilly” in Dedication (Justin Theroux, 2007)

One of the problems with Justin Theroux’s directorial debut (scripted by David Bromberg) is that the female love interest is not entirely an MPDG, but she should be. Even if that would make the film more cliché. Instead, as played by Mandy Moore, the character of Lucy Reilly is just as miserable as the protagonist (Billy Crudup), and it’s just not that entertaining watching too depressing people fall in love. ZD can, of course, be gloomy at times, but even at her most melancholy she has a spirit that’s hundreds of times more attractive than Moore’s performance in this film. Also, we’d have loved seeing ZD work again with her Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy costar, Martin Freeman.

“Claire Colburn” in Elizabethtown (Cameron Crowe, 2005)

As the film that inspired film critic Nathan Rabin to coin the MPDG term, this is an obvious inclusion. It’s also an appropriate selection for the fact that ZD made one of her earliest film appearances (and worst performances) in a Cameron Crowe film, Almost Famous. While she wouldn’t have been better than Kate Hudson as that film’s MPDG character, “Penny Lane,” she (and pretty much any actress) would have been more enjoyable (or, at least more tolerable) than Kirsten Dunst in Crowe’s Elizabethtown.

“Sam” in Garden State (Zach Braff, 2004)

Another obvious selection (and another cited originally by Rabin) for being one of the most obnoxious MPDG portrayals, Natalie Portman’s “Sam” pretty much tainted this kind of character forever. Yes, there were plenty of great MPDG characters, including those not played by ZD, who existed long before Portman came along with her awful laugh and tap dance routine. But for this and the Elizabethtown character to spark discussions and complaints was terrible for any future screenwriter inspired by Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Bringing Up Baby, Annie Hall, or any other decent MPDG film. Many of the “Sam” scenes in Garden State remind us of similar, yet better scenes from All the Real Girls, and so it’s not too difficult to imagine how good Garden State might have been with ZD in the part. Sure, the Shins might not have gained so much popularity, because ZD would have performed a song of her own for Zach Braff’s character instead of having him listen to the Garden State soundtrack, but we also wouldn’t now be so embarrassed for having discovered the Shins through such a lame scene.

“Kim” in The Last Kiss (Tony Goldwyn, 2006)

Unlike Garden State, Zach Braff didn’t write or direct The Last Kiss, though he might as well have since everybody thought of the earlier film while watching him fall for yet another bad MPDG. Rachel Bilson is too bland and indistinct an actress to play such a character (we always mistake her for Mila Kunis, who may or may not be doing her best MPDG in Forgetting Sarah Marshall). Though we’re not sure ZD would have any chemistry with Braff in one film, let alone two, we’d have rather seen her ill-fit in both Garden State and The Last Kiss than allow either Portman or Bilson more ill-fitting work.

“April Burns” in Pieces of April (Peter Hedges, 2003)

In Winter Passing, ZD plays a New Yorker MPDG who goes back home to see her dysfunctional father. It would have been an almost reciprocal film for her had she played the title character in Pieces of April, which instead stars the inadequate talents of Katie Holmes as a New Yorker MPDG whose dysfunctional family is coming to visit for Thanksgiving. Holmes hardly pulls off the alternative look of “April,” but we’d have loved seeing ZD rock those pigtails.

“Ana Pascal” in Stranger Than Fiction (Marc Forster, 2006)

As played by Maggie Gyllenhaal, the female lead in the Charlie Kaufman wannabe Stranger Than Fiction is quite a bore. As played by ZD, she would have been a lot more fun and a lot more believable as the anarchic baker. She also would have joined in on Will Ferrell’s rendition of “(I’d Go the) Whole Wide World,” rather than having no other response than to jump his bones. ZD has, of course, already played opposite Ferrell twice. And a third time would certainly have been a charm.

“Regina Lambert” in The Truth About Charlie (Jonathan Demme, 2002)

The female lead in this remake of Charade is not exactly an MPDG, nor does she seem supposed to be. But since it’s based on a character played by Audrey Hepburn, one of the queens of MPDG roles, we’d have preferred to see ZD in the part. Especially since Thandie Newton is one of the least enjoyable actresses on the planet. And especially since it would have been a better pairing with Mark Wahlberg than The Happening is. Plus, ZD might have been able to meet Anna Karina, who has a cameo in the film, in order to discuss that never-going-to-happen Pierrot le fou remake.

“Mikal” in Wristcutters: A Love Story (Goran Dukic, 2006)

Shannyn Sossamon is actually almost perfect in this quirky afterlife-set film, as it’s hard to tell with her if she’s telling the truth about the circumstances of her death. ZD might have more difficulty playing a character who can’t smile, but it would be interesting to see her try and play an MPDG who is a little bit of a stretch for her. Also, it might have been strangely satisfying to see her become romantically involved with her onscreen brother from Almost Famous. It certainly wouldn’t have been the weirdest thing about the film.