Lisa Kudrow is rewatching 'Friends' because of Matthew Perry

For years after FriendsLisa Kudrow admitted she couldn't bring herself to watch reruns of the beloved NBC sitcom, explaining she didn't want to risk not liking her job on the show. But in a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter to promote its next Apple TV+ series The bandits of timeKudrow — who became a household name in the mid-'90s as the endearingly idiosyncratic Phoebe Buffay — says she started revisiting oldies Friends episodes, largely to keep the memory of his late co-star Matthew Perry alive.

Perry died on October 28, 2023, aged 54, from the acute effects of the anesthetic ketamine, with his tragic death having repercussions around the world. A criminal investigation into the circumstances of his death is underway.

“I honestly haven't been able to watch it because it's too embarrassing to watch it yourself. But if I'm talking about Matthew, then it doesn't matter,” Kudrow said. THR. “And it's just to celebrate how hilarious he was – and that's what I want to remember [about him].”

Friends premiered on September 22, 1994 to 21.5 million viewers, immediately transforming its cast of Kudrow, Perry, Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer – who played six best friends living in New York – into global superstars . The series ran for 10 seasons and 236 episodes, with last month marking the 20th anniversary of the series finale.

During the Friends reunion special, which aired on HBO Max in 2021, Kudrow told her former co-stars that after she started catching up on the series with her husband, Michel Stern, she was struck by how funny the show was — a sentiment that persists today.

What does Kudrow see when she revisits the series now?

“I'm laughing out loud and everyone is hilarious. I'm blown away by Courteney Cox. I am blown away by Jen. Matthew, obviously, is just hilarious. No one had ever experienced this cadence or comic rhythm before him. Matt LeBlanc is hilarious. And David Schwimmer too. Sometimes I even laugh at what I did,” Kudrow says with a self-deprecating laugh. “So yeah, I mean, it's my own little way of celebrating [the anniversaries], I just watched it. But it's embarrassing. At home, if someone comes into the room and I look FriendsIt's a horrible look, I think, isn't it?

Of all the moments of Friends One of the funniest episodes of the series is “The One Where Everyone Finds Out”, when the other characters discover that Perry and Cox's characters, Chandler and Monica, are secretly dating. After finding out, Phoebe decides to annoy them both by flirting with Chandler, and even trying to seduce him. Despite admitting in past interviews that she didn't remember certain moments from the show, Phoebe decided to make fun of both of them. FriendsKudrow says she remembers it was LeBlanc who suggested Joey unbutton Phoebe's shirt, in an attempt to outsmart Chandler.

“It's like, 'We need to find something to raise the stakes.' And I think he was the one who said, “What if he [imitates unbuttoning a shirt with one hand] …and the shirt opens?' » Kudrow recalls the farcical story with a laugh. “And they ask me, 'Is it okay for you to wear a bra?' And I said, “A bra? There's more coverage than a swimsuit! It's good.'”

And Kudrow says it's that feeling of immense joy she felt every day with her ensemble that remains her fondest memory of creating it. Friends. “You basically laugh all day, between scenes, because they’re funny people. And especially someone like Matthew, whose goal was: how many laughs can I get in real life every day? We were always laughing so hard that tears were streaming down our faces,” she recalls with a fond smile.

When asked how she hopes the world will remember her friend Perry, that she thanked in a heartfelt tribute After his passing last October, Kudrow put it simply: “I think the world remembers him the way he wanted to be remembered.” I think it's happening [already].”

Kudrow will next be seen in Taika Waititi, Jemaine Clement and Iain Morris' Time Banditsthe Apple TV+ series adaptation of Terry Gilliam's 1981 fantasy classic. The original film starred Gilliam's Monty Python co-stars John Cleese and Michael Palin, as well as Sean Connery, Shelley Duvall and Ian Holm. In the series – which continues Kudrow's trend of playing charming, comedic characters who lack a certain self-awareness – Kudrow plays Penelope, the de facto leader of a ragtag group of thieves who travel through time and space. space with their latest recruit: Kevin (Kal-El Tuck), an 11-year-old history buff.

Time Bandits premieres July 24 on Apple TV+.