This Sex And The City Actress Almost Starred as Monica In Friends
You won't believe how she found out she hadn't got the part!
In 2000, having already established herself as Charlotte York in Sex and the City, Kristin Davis appeared in season 7, episode 7 as Erin – Joey's new love interest.
But things could have turned out so differently for the actor who is currently starring in And Just Like That… alongside fellow Sex and the City alumni Sarah Jessica Parker (Carrie Bradshaw) and Cynthia Nixon (Miranda Hobbes).
Speaking on The Late Late Show with James Corden, Davis revealed she auditioned for the role of Monica Gellar on 'Friends' back in the 90s. At the time, she was a jobbing actor auditioning for roles while working other jobs to pay the bills.
Of course, back then, nobody knew how successful the sitcom would go on to be. But it turns out Courtney Cox – who landed the role ahead of Kristen Davis and more than 8000 other auditionees – clearly had high hopes for it.
'Courteney and I were in the same yoga class at the time. We used to hang out,' Davis told Corden. 'And one day Courteney was like, "Hey guys, do you want to come car shopping with me?"'
Cox went on to explain how she'd done a pilot and was 'feeling really good about it' so had decided to treat herself to a Porsche.
Needless to say, she was absolutely right, with Friends frequently attracting in excess of 20 million viewers during its decade of dominance.
Surprisingly, given that she was a star in her own right by the time she eventually appeared in an episode of Friends, Davis said got nervous in the run up to her performance. She described how she was 'losing sleep' partly because she was entering 'this world that has been created that is so alive and so specific' and partly due to the idea of facing a live audience.
Nonetheless, she thoroughly enjoyed her time recording the show and even 'learned a lot' from the way the cast of Friends had 'cohesion' and had 'bonded together as a group'.
If the role hadn't gone to Courtney Cox, Kristin Davis would almost certainly have made a good Monica Gellar. But that would have meant we were denied seeing her portray Charlotte in Sex and the City. And we know that's a part she excelled in.
Source: Youtube, Friends Ratings Archive.