Former TV writer Patty Lin reveals in her upcoming memoir, “End Credits: How I Broke Up with Hollywood,” that her experience working on the hit sitcom “Friends” was far from the dream job she had anticipated.
In her memoir, Lin discloses that the star-studded cast of “Friends,” including Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, and Matthew Perry, would intentionally sabotage jokes during table reads, leading to constant rewrites.
During her time as a writer on Season 7 of “Friends” from 2000 to 2001, Lin felt that the actors were dissatisfied with being tied to an aging show and were more concerned with how each script would serve them individually.
Lin, known for her work on other popular TV shows like “Freaks and Geeks,” “Desperate Housewives,” and “Breaking Bad,” shared excerpts from her memoir in an article published by Time.
Despite being a dramatic writer, Lin couldn’t pass up the opportunity to work on “Friends.” However, she felt immense pressure and imposter syndrome, questioning if her hiring was due to NBC’s diversity initiative rather than her talent.
Lin also described the “Friends” writing team as cliquey, comparing them to preppy rich kids from her high school days.
According to Lin, the excitement of working on “Friends” wore off quickly. She observed that many great jokes would be discarded during table reads due to the lead actors’ lackluster delivery.
In her memoir, Lin expressed that the actors saw themselves as protectors of their characters, often arguing against proposed lines and creating a tense and aggressive atmosphere.
Notably, Lin noted that the actors rarely offered feasible solutions when pointing out problems in the scripts.
Ultimately, Lin concluded that she didn’t learn much from her time on “Friends” except that she never wanted to work on a sitcom again.
Lin is not the only person to criticize “Friends” since its conclusion in 2004. Jennifer Aniston herself acknowledged that modern audiences might find some of the jokes offensive.
Aniston attributed the offensiveness to a combination of unintentional elements and a lack of thoughtfulness in the show’s content.
“Friends,” a wildly successful comedy about six friends living in New York City, has faced criticism for its lack of diversity. While actors of color made sporadic appearances in minor roles, the show prominently featured Aisha Tyler for only nine episodes.
Additionally, some of the jokes in “Friends” have been labeled transphobic or homophobic.
Despite the criticism, “Friends” remains one of the most profitable sitcoms of all time, earning over $1.4 billion since its premiere in 1994.
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