Lisa Kudrow, best known for playing Phoebe Buffay on Friends, has opened up about the darker side of her time on the hit sitcom. In a new interview, the 62-year-old actress revealed that the female cast faced intense scrutiny from the show's mostly male writers' room.
Kudrow told The Times that there was 'mean stuff going on behind the scenes', with writers sometimes making derogatory comments if a line didn't get the desired response. She recalled one instance where a writer said, 'Can't the bitch f***ing read? She's not even trying. She f***ed up my line.'
She also revealed that the writers would stay up until 3am working on the show, and that 'the guys would be up late discussing their sexual fantasies about Jennifer and Courteney'. Kudrow said her attitude was to let them say what they liked behind her back, as it didn't matter.
During Friends' run, a writer's assistant named Amaani Lyle filed a lawsuit alleging racial discrimination and sexual harassment, claiming she heard writers discuss sexual acts with female cast members and make demeaning comments. The lawsuit was dismissed in 2006.
Kudrow, who now stars in The Comeback, told The Independent earlier this month that despite Friends' success, she was often referred to as 'the sixth Friend' by her talent agency. She noted that she was the first cast member to win an Emmy, but said there were no expectations for her career beyond the show.
