Friends actress Aisha Tyler has opened up about her experiences on the beloved sitcom as it celebrates its 30th anniversary.
The hit TV series ran from 1994 to 2004 and followed the lives of a close group of friends in their 20s and 30s living in New York City.
To this day, it’s considered one of the most popular comedy shows of all time and during its run received 62 Primetime Emmy nominations.
Despite being so popular, it hasn’t come without its criticism.
The sitcom has been called out for its lack of diversity – especially considering the show’s New York City setting, where it’s estimated African American, Hispanic, Latino, and Asian people make up over 67% of the population, per Insight Vacations.
One viewer writes: “I always side-eyed that show. They were in New York and everyone was white.”
“Friends literally took place in NYC, one of, if not the most diverse place in the world,” a second responds.
A third adds: “The show is very outdated now, it’s problematic.”
It’s not just viewers who have criticized the sitcom’s diversity.
Adam Goldberg, who briefly played the role of Chandler’s roommate Eddie, told The Independent the Friends‘ lack of diversity is ‘insane.’
He added: “I’ve heard Black people speak about this and it’s like, you never expected to see yourself, so when you didn’t, it was not a surprise, and you ended up identifying to characters, irrespective of their race.”
Co-creator Marta Kauffman has also mulled over the sitcom, telling The Los Angeles Times: “I’ve learned a lot in the last 20 years.
“Admitting and accepting guilt is not easy. It’s painful looking at yourself in the mirror. I’m embarrassed that I didn’t know better 25 years ago.”
Having reflected on the show, Kauffman has since pledged $4 million to her alma mater, Brandeis University, in support of its African and African American studies department.
Aisha Tyler made history when she became the first Black person to have a recurring role on Friends.
Tyler starred in nine episodes as Charlie Wheeler, a paleontology professor who worked alongside David Schwimmer’s character, Ross.
She reflected on starring in the show in an interview with Entertainment Tonight, in which she said ‘the cast was incredibly kind, incredibly welcoming.’
The actress said: “My knees were knocking. I was shocked you couldn’t hear my teeth chattering the entire time I was on set.
“We walked out, and we did a curtain call [where] everybody [does a] bow to the audience at the end of the show. As we’re backstage, Matthew Perry just leans in and goes, ‘Get ready for your life to change.’”
The Criminal Minds star added that it was sweet of the late Matthew Perry to say this as she was so ‘petrified’ and ‘trying not to pee herself.’
Tyler revealed she was a fan of Friends before getting the role and said she’d watched every episode, which helped her understand its ‘tempo.’
She explained: “It had a way of kind of turning things on their head and emphasizing words in different ways [than] you would in normal conversation… They just had a way with wordplay and away with them with delivering lines. It just felt unique to the show.”
Yet in an interview with The Independent, she also acknowledged the conversation around the show’s lack of diversity.
She recalled hearing passersby calling out: ‘Black girl from Friends,’ continuing: “It was such a common refrain at the time.
“It wasn’t like it was just something that people looked back at later and said, ‘Wait a minute.’ No, at the time, people talked quite a bit about the fact that, for a show that was set in the heart of Manhattan, it really lacked diversity.
“But we didn’t have social media back then, so it wasn’t the large-scale conversation that it became later.”
She added that Friends reflected the film and TV industry’s belief that ‘only white stories sold,’ adding: “I mean, that’s just been the attitude in Hollywood for a long time.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Tyler also praised co-star Schwimmer, who ‘really pushed’ for more diversity in the sitcom.
