Lisa Kudrow, popular for her role in Friends as Phoebe Buffay, has shared details about her experience working on the popular sitcom. She said that while the show was successful, the environment behind the scenes was sometimes difficult.
Kudrow was part of the show for a 10-season run on NBC. She said that the writing staff, which was mostly dominated by men, was a bit harsh towards the cast.
“There was definitely mean stuff going on behind the scenes,” said Kudrow. “Don’t forget we were recording in front of a live audience of 400, 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 bitch fucking read? She’s not even trying. She fucked up my line.'”
She explained that the pressure of performing in front of a live audience made mistakes more stressful. The reactions from writers added to that pressure.
Kudrow also spoke about the behavior in the writers’ room. She said that some of the discussions went beyond work and became uncomfortable.
She said, “the guys would be up late discussing their sexual fantasies about Jennifer [Aniston] and Courteney [Cox]. It was intense.”
The actors she mentioned, Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox, were her co-stars on the show.
Kudrow described the overall behavior of the writers as “brutal.” However, she said she did not focus too much on it because much of it happened behind closed doors.
“Oh, it could be brutal, but these guys, and it was mostly men in there, 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,’ ” she said.
She explained that she chose to concentrate on her work instead of reacting to what was said privately.
The issue of behavior in the writers’ room had been raised before. In 1999, a writers’ assistant named Amaani Lyle filed a lawsuit against Warner Bros. Television.
Lyle claimed that the writers often made sexual and racist remarks. As part of her job, she had to take notes on everything said in the room. The case eventually reached the Supreme Court.
The court ruled against Lyle. It was decided that the behavior described was part of the work environment.
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