Lisa Kudrow set the record straight on her iconic ‘Friends‘ character, Phoebe Buffay. And now, she’s revealing what people got completely wrong about her.
While ‘Friends‘ fans have long loved Phoebe for her quirky charm, Kudrow now shares that the character was a lot more thoughtful and layered than she was ever given credit for.
Why Phoebe Buffay Was Misunderstood On ‘Friends’
When ‘Friends‘ first aired in 1994, Lisa Kudrow’s Phoebe Buffay quickly became a fan favorite. She was funny, unpredictable, and very different from the rest of the group. But at the same time, people started oddly labeling her.
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In an interview with Lily Tomlin, Kudrow recalled the public response to her ‘Friends’ character, “Everybody. In 1994, it was like, ‘I love her. She’s such a ditz.'” She stated, “And it’s like, yeah, okay, that was what a ditz was to us. Someone who wasn’t toeing the line.” Even though Kudrow never saw Phoebe that way, the label kept following the character.
But Lisa Kudrow made it very clear that Phoebe Buffay “wasn’t stupid.” She pushed back against the idea that her character’s odd behavior meant she was not smart.
Lisa Kudrow Explains The Real Truth About Phoebe’s Character
Kudrow also shared that playing Phoebe was not easy in the beginning. The character felt very different from who she was in real life. “At first, Phoebe was very, very far from me. It took a lot of work to justify the things she would say and do.”
The Phoebe actor added, “Over the course of 10 years, a little bit of her came into me. I lightened up a little more and read some books on spirituality and things, just to try to understand her.”
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Over time, Kudrow started to connect with Phoebe more. She began to understand how Phoebe saw the world and why she behaved the way she did. Phoebe worked many jobs on the show and was also a musician, which added more depth to her character.
Though the role brought Lisa Kudrow so much love from the audience and also critical acclaim, she had to struggle a lot with getting acknowledgement for her hard work.
In an interview with ‘The Independent,’ she revealed feeling overlooked by the industry, even at the peak of ‘Friends’. Even her own talent agency positioned her, not as a breakout star, but as the “sixth friend,” which had a long-term effect on her future potential.
In order not to let the industry define her, Kudrow had to take matters into her own hands. She didn’t let the success that came with Phoebe Buffay tie her down and strove to work on a new series with dynamic roles, which allowed her greater creative control.
“Because I was on ‘Friends,’ I got to create my own shows that didn’t have to be as big as ‘Friends,’ so I could do something like ‘The Comeback’ or ‘Web Therapy,’ and that was really fulfilling,” she revealed.
So, our Phoebe Buffay was never just a “ditz.” She was simply different, and that is exactly what made her special.
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