Friends star Lisa Kudrow has revealed her unfiltered thoughts on one of the show’s most iconic storylines – and characters – as she blasts Ross (David Schwimmer) for being a “bad boyfriend”.
Kudrow became a household name through the character of Phoebe Buffay, one of the six principal members of the Central Perk pals, whose lives were chronicled across 10 seasons of the legendary sitcom.
In that time, the show’s most famous (or infamous) coupling was Ross and Rachel (Jennifer Aniston), whose will-they-won’t-they dynamic stretched across the entire run.
Their initial dalliance came to an end after a blazing row over Rachel’s demanding job, which brought her in close proximity to handsome colleague Mark (Steven Eckholdt), whom Ross felt rather threatened by.
These strains eventually caused Rachel to suggest a “break” in their relationship, at which point Ross immediately slept with another woman. Cue: decades’ worth of debate over whether this was an act of cheating, or if they really were “on a break”.
Kudrow’s mind is made up: “Well, no [they weren’t]. But it’s beyond that. It’s beyond break or not — he was a bad boyfriend.”
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The actor told Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show: “We did the reunion just, like, five years ago… We were all so like, ‘They were on a break.’ Like, ‘Rachel, that hysterical shrew, not letting him sleep with someone and won’t get back together.'”
However, since rewatching the sitcom as a way to remember her late co-star Matthew Perry, Kudrow has come to see the storyline from a different point of view.
“She shouldn’t have gotten back with him because he was horrible,” she continued, to supportive cheers from the studio audience.
Kudrow concluded: “To me, it’s like, I don’t care if he slept with three other women or no other women. You had a crisis at work, so you weren’t available for a few nights, and he flipped out. And you’re like, ‘Wow!'”
The actor is referencing the cringe-inducing moment when Ross turns up at Rachel’s office with a picnic basket as she’s frantically working out-of-hours on a company emergency. However it was intended, the gesture proves to be highly misjudged.
You can find Kudrow’s full conversation with Fallon below, where she also discusses the third and final season of The Comeback.
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