'Magnum P.I.': Cyndi Lauper Playing Secret Role on Monday Night's Episode

This week's episode of Magnum P.I. will include Cyndi Lauper as a special guest star, but her role [...]

By Michael Hein

This week's episode of Magnum P.I. will include Cyndi Lauper as a special guest star, but her role in the show is still mired in mystery.

Lauper appears in CBS' early still photos from Monday night's episode, which is titled "Sudden Death." She appears to be in one bland, high-windowed room in all of the photos, and is only ever shown alongside Thomas Magnum himself (Jay Hernandez). Lauper's role in the episode is listed as XXX, likely meaning that the network wants to keep her role as secret as possible until the episode is out.

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(Photo: Karen Neal/CBS)

Still, we know for sure that the 1980's pop icon will be on TV, and there are some educated guesses about her role going around. One photo shows Lauper holding a heavily ringed finger very close to Magnum's face, suggesting to some that she knows him pretty well. If she is comfortable poking him, some believe Lauper is playing the detective's mother. This is hearsay, however, and nothing is set in stone yet.

Lauper's eventual appearance on the show has been teased since last month, when she appeared at the annual Sunset on the Beach event for a special screening of the premiere episode of Magnum P.I. She played live and posed for photos with Zachary Knighton, who plays Rick Wright on the series.
The production and Lauper both teased the special appearance on Twitter.

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(Photo: Karen Neal/CBS)

"Magnum just wants to have fun with Monday's special guest star, [Cyndi Lauper]!" tweeted the show's official account.

"Omg! Monday night!" added Lauper herself. "It was so much fun!" she included a fire emoji and a red heart.


While little is known about Lauper's role, some are suspicious that it might be more than a one-off guest appearance. The singer has hyped the show a lot on social media, and her presence at the early screening in Hawaii suggests that she is very attached to the project.

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(Photo: Karen Neal/CBS)

"On a lighter note, I'm on #MagnumPI tonight!" she wrote again on Monday afternoon. "Come on! It was so much fun and I do love detective shows. So see ya tonight 9:00/ 8 central time."

Fans of both Lauper and the show replied with their excitement for the episode. One noted that one of Lauper's songs played during last week's episode — a clever bit of foreshadowing. Others said they were excited to see her back on TV after some of her guest roles on other shows.

Magnum P.I. airs on Mondays at 9 p.m. ET on CBS.

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