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Lisa Kudrow is revisiting her time on “Friends” with new claims about a harsh writers’ room, calling parts of the experience “brutal.”
Kudrow, best known for playing Phoebe Buffay on the hit sitcom, said the atmosphere behind the scenes was often tense and, at times, inappropriate, pointing to what she describes as a writers’ room culture fueled by cutting remarks.
“There was definitely mean stuff going on behind the scenes,” Kudrow, 62, told the Sunday Times.
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Lisa Kudrow claimed the predominantly male writers’ room on “Friends” was “brutal.” (ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images)
Kudrow claimed the pressure to perform was matched by harsh feedback from writers when things didn’t land perfectly.
“Don’t forget, we were recording in front of a live audience of 400,” she said. “And if you messed up one of these writers’ lines, or it didn’t get the perfect response, they could be like, ‘Can’t the b—- f—ing read? She’s not even trying. She f—ed up my line.’”
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Matt LeBlanc, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer, Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox and Matthew Perry are seen in an episode of “Friends.” (Alice S. Hall/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images)
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Kudrow also pointed to what she described as troubling conversations behind the scenes, alleging that the show’s writing staff, which she said was made up of “mostly men,” made sexually explicit comments about her co-stars.
“We know that back in the room, the guys would be up late discussing their sexual fantasies about Jennifer and Courteney. It was intense,” Kudrow said, later adding, “Oh, it could be brutal.”
“Friends,” which aired for ten seasons, was shot in front of a live-studio audience. (Gary Null/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images)
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The claims cut against the enduring legacy of “Friends” as a defining, feel-good sitcom of the 1990s. The hit show was filmed on the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank, California.
Even amid the alleged tension, Kudrow said she learned to block out the noise and mainly focus on the job.
“Friends” aired for 10 seasons. (NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal)
“These guys … were sitting up until 3 a.m. trying to write the show, so my attitude was, ‘Say what you like about me behind my back because then it doesn’t matter.’”
Fox News Digital has reached out to Kudrow, NBC and Warner Bros. for comment.
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“Friends,” which first debuted on NBC in 1994, was one of the most-watched sitcoms on television. Throughout the years, the cast remained close, even reuniting for a special on HBO Max in 2021.
Kudrow won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series in 1998 for her work as Phoebe.