Lisa Kudrow Says Jerry Seinfeld Once Took Credit for the Success of 'Friends'

"I said, 'Hi,' and he said, 'You're welcome'"

BY Sydney BrasilPublished Aug 11, 2022

While there's no denying that Friends and Seinfeld were two of the most popular sitcoms of the '90s, Lisa Kudrow says she never felt competition between the two shows. She does, however, recall a moment between her and Jerry Seinfeld where he may have taken responsibility for the former's fame.

In a recent interview with Daily Beast, Kudrow — who played Phoebe Buffay in Friends — opened up about a party that both she and Seinfeld attended in the early days of her show's success. While the show's first season originally aired after Mad About You, she says it really started to blow up in the reruns after appearing on TV following Seinfeld

"It was in the summer when we were in reruns after Seinfeld, where Seinfeld was our lead-in, where we exploded," explained Kudrow. "I remember going to some party and Jerry Seinfeld was there, and I said, 'Hi, and he said, 'You're welcome.' I said, 'Why, thank you… what?' And he said, 'You're on after us in the summer, and you're welcome.' And I said, 'That's exactly right. Thank you.'"

It could be that Seinfeld was only teasing, but Kudrow seems to think he may have had a point. "Not to take anything away from the writing on Friends, or the cast, or how good Friends really was, but the first season our ratings were just fine."

While the original series of Friends ended in 2004, HBO Max released a reunion special last year.
 

Latest Coverage