Jessica Hecht reveals she auditioned for Monica before being cast as Susan in ‘Friends': 'They just couldn't figure out...'
revealed that she had actually auditioned for the role of Monica on 'Friends'. Carol and Ross were played by Jane Sibbett and David Schwimmer, respectively.
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In a recent interview with Parade, the three-time Tony nominee shared that her audition for Monica happened quite unexpectedly. 'I knew the casting director from high school. I grew up in a small town near Hartford, Connecticut, called Bloomfield,' Hecht recalled. 'The only other person from my town who's an actor or has anything to do with entertainment is Anika Noni Rose. But there was this woman, Ellie Kanner.'
'I was out in Los Angeles, and my agent said, 'Oh, I sent your picture to this casting director for Friends,'' she added.
'There's one part; they're not sure if the actor will take it. They want to still look at some other actors, and I think she knows you from high school.' So I went in, mostly excited to see Ellie Kanner, and then they started to read me for Monica.'
Being a backup didn't bother her
Of course, Courteney Cox was eventually chosen to play Monica. Hecht told Parade that she thought of herself as 'a total backup.'
She was later cast as Susan, a recurring character in 'Friends', and appeared in more than a dozen episodes, starting from the second episode of season 1.
Reflecting on that time, Hecht said, 'If you're at the very beginning, you don't know what it's going to be. So you're just there trying to help them figure out what the show is. And you don't feel the weight of its history, because it has no history.'
She added, 'In Friends, it's not that it was casual, but the show was not iconic by any stretch. So I had more creativity, and I had more of a sense of just trusting my gut about what I wanted to do with this character.
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And Jane Sibbett, who played my beautiful wife, we were so locked into each other, so it was mostly about our energy together. The actors were awesome, but nobody had that confidence yet, so it was a very delicious time.
'
Hecht's struggles with character development
Hecht also revealed that it was challenging for the show's creators to develop Susan's character. Carol and Susan's storyline was one of the earliest depictions of same-sex marriage on mainstream television, with their wedding featured in the first episode of season 2.
Speaking about the role, Hecht said, 'They just couldn't figure out how to make Susan work.' She added, 'Because they—well, it's awful. But let's face it, all they wanted was a lesbian who didn't look exactly like lesbians had in the past.'
Looking back, Hecht shared that she feels thankful she wasn't a lead character. She said the short stint on the show allowed her to enjoy the experience without dealing with the pressure of being in the spotlight all the time.
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India Today
31 minutes ago
- India Today
US doctor pleads guilty to supplying ketamine to Friends star Matthew Perry
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Time of India
10 hours ago
- Time of India
'Friends' star Matthew Perry's doctor to plead guilty to supplying illegal dosage of Ketamine
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Indian Express
12 hours ago
- Indian Express
When Suriya, Vijay, Jyotika and Madhavan joined forces in a short film to show how to be a ‘hero', and not a ‘zero'. Watch
There was a time, long before the 'pan-India' trend took over, when actors could collaborate effortlessly. It wasn't seen as a big deal, nor was it made into one. These collaborations would happen naturally, without any conscious attempt to blow them out of proportion. The same was true in the Tamil film industry. In fact, in his debut film, Suriya wasn't the solo hero; Vijay, who had already made a name for himself and was rapidly rising to stardom, also played a central role. In other words, director Vasanth's Nerrukku Ner (1997) featured both Suriya and Vijay in lead roles, with Simran and Kausalya playing their respective love interests. The film was a commercial success and helped establish Suriya almost instantly as a promising actor. It didn't take long for the two stars to join forces again. They reunited in Siddique's Friends (2001), a remake of his own 1999 Malayalam film of the same name. In it, Suriya and Vijay played best friends alongside Ramesh Khanna. The film became a blockbuster and marked a turning point in both actors' careers. Though they haven't shared screen space in a feature film since, their mutual respect and affection have remained strong, rooted in a bond that predates their stardom as both hail from prominent film families and knew each other well even before entering the industry. But did you know that Suriya and Vijay collaborated once more after Friends, and that too in a short film? Yep, you read that right. Along with them, the short docudrama 'Herova? Zerova?' also featured Suriya's wife Jyotika and R Madhavan, all playing themselves. Produced and released by Suriya's Agaram Foundation to emphasise the need for education, the short film was sponsored by the Ministry of Education, Tamil Nadu. It was directed by Priya V and featured a stellar team comprising KV Anand (cinematography), Harris Jayaraj (music), Sreekar Prasad (editing) and Na Muthukumar (lyrics), making it a dream collaboration. The short film opens in a classroom where a teacher is taking attendance. While many students are present, a few are absent. Each time a name is called and the student is missing, the scene cuts to reveal where they actually are. While one is shown working in a stone quarry, another — a little girl — is running her household while carrying a baby in one hand. As the film progresses, more kids are shown in child labour, their right to education denied. Soon, Suriya, Vijay, Jyotika and Madhavan appear on screen, rescuing these children from labour and teaching them about the value of schooling, emphasising that education determines whether one becomes a 'hero or zero'. The short ends on a hopeful note, showing that their campaign has yielded good results and that the children have embraced education and are now attending school. 'You will become heroes in life only if you study,' the four of them say. Speaking about his foundation, Suriya once told Rediff, 'Agaram is the first alphabet in Tamil. Agaram is the beginning of everything connected with education. That is why we decided to have the name for our foundation.' Opening up about the decision to make the short film, he noted, 'This was done to make people aware of the importance of education. I am not doing this for publicity for me or my family. That is the reason why I have roped in actors like Vijay and Madhavan in the film; so that they can send the message across effectively. I will not be able to meet each and every child who doesn't go to school and tell him the importance of education. If I can inspire anybody to sponsor a child's education though this film, it will be great.' He added, 'It was the Tamil Nadu Education department that asked us to make a video clip urging students not to drop out of school. I thought that was not enough and why should this be restricted only to me? Why not include other like-minded actors who are my friends in the film? It is a great cause and it brought all of us — Vijay, Maddy Jo, K V Anand Sir, Priya, Harris Jayaraj, Srikar Prasad — together.'
