5 Most Scandalous Revelations from Friends Writer, From Sex Talk to Tanking Jokes
Friends will never be the same again.
Next year, Friends will be celebrating its thirtieth anniversary. While NBC's hit sitcom has been making us laugh with the life stories of six New Yorkers for all these years, it's now been revealed that things weren't as cheerful behind the scenes. Patty Lin, who served as a writer for the sitcom's seventh season, has recently published her memoir in which she candidly discusses her experience on the show.
Here are the five most disturbing revelations she makes in End Credits: How I Broke Up with Hollywood.
5. The Crew Was Divided into Cliques
Lin joined Friends in 2000 when it was a well-established project with a close-knit staff. In addition to feeling like an outsider, she writes that she found it challenging to blend in because the other writers were 'cliquey.'
4. The Pervasive Sex Talk
Beyond the oppressive hostility in the writers' relationships, Patty writes that she was unnerved by how prevalent the sex talk was. Whenever they ran out of topics to discuss – which happened quickly, as you might imagine – they would turn to each other's sex lives. What's more, these conversations were often reflected in the characters' storylines, like Rachel's erotic novels.
3. The Leads Were Tired of the Show
At the same time, Patty writes that she sensed that the cast was visibly weary of the show they had been on for seven years (they didn't know yet that three more seasons were to follow).
By 2000, the actors were ready to spread their wings and expand their careers, and their performances often reflected that.
2. Yet They Were Picky About Their Lines
By season 7, J. Aniston, M. Perry, C. Cox, L. Kudrow, M. LeBlanc, and D. Schwimmer were big stars. According to Lin, they demonstrated this during table reads when they would critique the writers' work and demand changes to the script for their characters.
1. …And Deliberately Sabotaged Jokes They Didn't Like
If the writers didn't heed the stars' demands, they would ruin the jokes they didn't like – for instance, by mumbling them or botching the entire delivery to get the writers to change the piece.
Friends' fans have had mixed reactions to the inside scoop.
'I was not at all shocked when she mentioned how the other actors just wanted to move on to other projects because I hear about this from actors all the time. It's such a shame though because I rewatched the episodes she mentioned and it makes me look at them completely differently. The part about the actors purposely messing up their lines if they didn't like a joke definitely left a bad taste in my mouth,' a Redditor commented.
In light of the ongoing WAG-SAG-AFTRA strike, these revelations seem all the more relevant to many people involved in the industry.