David Schwimmer
I firmly believe the success of Friends is not just that it was funny, but that there was some real heart to these characters –the love between them and how they looked out for each other like a family.[Offscreen we've been close as well.] One of the [reasons] is that the six of us actually liked each other. That's rare. . . . The second thing would be what happened to us the first year was jarring in terms of our place in the world. That sudden celebrity was so scary for all of us. Everyone handled it differently, but the only other people you could really talk to about it were the other five. We grabbed on to each other and clung for dear life.
My experience from my ensemble theater company [in Chicago] is that of a truly democratic decision-making process where everyone has a voice. Everyone is really listened to and heard. . . . I [urged] the group to work in that fashion. . . . So if some idea came down from NBC or Warner Bros. . . . then as a group we would go in a room, privately talk about it, debate the pros and cons and then decide. Luckily, that stuck. . . . I didn't realize the power it would eventually wield us in terms of our negotiations.
The most meaningful part is when [a person] says, "My daughter's sick in the hospital. She watches your show. That's the one thing that's making her happy. That will get her through this." That's huge . . . influencing and perhaps making so many people that you'll never meet or hear of, feel a little better.
From FRIENDS . . . 'TIL THE END, to be published May 7 by Time Inc. Home Entertainment. Copyright © 2004 Warner Bros. Entertainment In
JOSH & FERGIE: ROCKED BY SCANDAL
Did he cheat with a stripper?
Married less than a year, the couple denies an Atlanta woman’s claims that she and Josh had a fling
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