Friends star Lisa Kudrow jokingly explains why she didn’t like her son’s reaction to the show. Although it went off the air in 2004, after ten seasons, Friends has remained a huge part of pop culture. The sitcom about six New Yorkers finding love and figuring their lives out has enjoyed a second wind, not only thanks to syndication but also because of its availability on streaming services. As evidenced by HBO Max’s recent reunion special, which brought back Kudrow along with other Friends alums Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry, and David Schwimmer, generations of new fans are discovering the seminal series and identifying with different parts of it.
For many of those new viewers, it’s those classic Friends episodes that helped to make the comedy such a hit. For others, it was the relationships between their characters and their romantic entanglements that give the show its heart. And for a few, the questions about whether Ross and Rachel were actually on a break that is worth revisiting and debating anew. The cast of Friends has experienced this themselves, as many recurring actors and special guests have revealed that they’re best known for their time on the sitcom — even if it was relatively brief.
Appearing in an interview on Late Night with Seth Meyers, Kudrow revealed that her son had finally watched the first few episodes of Friends while he was sick with COVID. The actress, who of course played Phoebe Buffay, recalled that she nearly cried because she didn’t think anyone in her family liked the series. But, as she started asking more questions of her 24-year-old son, Julian Murray Stern, she was less than enthused by his response. Read Kudrow’s quote below.
“He called me up and said, ‘So I just watched the first two episodes. It’s really good, Mom. I said, ‘Thanks.’ He said, ‘Can I ask you some questions about that?’ I’m like, ‘Yes!’ I almost started crying. I didn’t think that anyone in my family liked that show. He was 5 when we were finished… but he did start watching when his friends at school started watching.
He watched it and he was impressed.” He said, ‘It’s actually really funny. I mean, the guys are so funny.’ He’s like, ’No, I mean you’re funny too.’ Never in my life have I wanted to tell my own kid, like, ‘F— you!’ I mean, I thought it, I didn’t say it. It’s not required that you’re a fan. You don’t have to like what I do. But don’t … be so demeaning!”
Kudrow noted that because of Friends streaming on Netflix in the U.S., and now HBO Max, she’s met a lot of young people that have seen her work. It clearly struck a different chord, both positively and a little annoyingly, with her only son. The Emmy-nominated performer was pregnant with Julian while filming, and the pregnancy was written into a memorable storyline during Friends season 4 as Phoebe became a surrogate mother for her half-brother and ended up giving birth to triplets. The story was one of the show’s most emotional, highlighting Kudrow’s ability to shine in more dramatic moments.
Perhaps that was some of what Kudrow’s son was responding to in his surprise that Friends was actually funny. The show is remembered often as a touchstone of the 1990s and a collection of standout scenes and enduring cultural artifacts like Rachel’s hair or even Phoebe’s hit song “Smelly Cat.” It belies the fact that, at its core, and when it was at its best, the show was good at being a consistently funny sitcom.
Go to Source
Author: Abdullah Al-Ghamdi
