Lisa Kudrow shared a humorous anecdote about her late Friends co-star Matthew Perry during her appearance on the Thursday, May 7, episode of The View.
Sara Haines asked the actress if she ever reflects on behind-the-scenes moments when watching an episode on TV. Kudrow responded with a laugh, “Yes, oh my God.”
The Stars Would ‘Ambush Tickle’ Each Other
The Emmy winner explained that she, Matt LeBlanc, and Perry often engaged in playful antics on set. “We would ambush tickle each other just to relax and lighten up,” she said.
“It’s terrifying,” she joked. “And someone would be lurking, you know, they walk by and you just went like that [flinching].”
Kudrow also recounted a specific moment from a Halloween episode where Sean Penn played her character’s boyfriend.
“[Penn] walked by Matthew Perry who was in a giant pink bunny outfit, and Matthew went ‘WOAH!’ And then came over and said ‘Just thought Sean Penn was gonna try to tickle me,’” she recalled. “We laughed so hard, of course Sean Penn wasn’t gonna tickle him!”
“It didn’t make sense,” she added.
Lisa Kudrow Debates ‘Friends’ Storyline
Kudrow also discussed another Friends tidbit, focusing on the love story between Jennifer Aniston and David Schwimmer’s characters.
“Okay, could I say more about that thought? Because that wasn’t the complete thought, OK?” she said, defending her stance that Schwimmer’s Ross could have been a better boyfriend to Aniston’s Rachel.
“He wasn’t [a good boyfriend] at that moment, and then he got better by the end, and he was sending her off. Like, yes, go to Paris, don’t think twice, it’s a great opportunity,” she said of their arc in the final episodes.
“In the season where [they] were on a break, to me it didn’t matter that he cheated. It was way after the fact that he was completely unsupportive and dismissive of her career, her job, and her dedication to it,” she elaborated. “Like, well, I haven’t seen you in three nights because you had a crisis. Yeah, that’s what bothered me.”
Matthew Perry Died in 2023
Matthew Perry passed away at age 53 in October 2023 due to an accidental drug overdose after years of battling addiction.
The acute effects of ketamine were listed as the 17 Again star’s cause of death, with secondary factors including drowning, coronary artery disease, and buprenorphine effects.
Kudrow expressed her grief on social media with a throwback photo and heartfelt message, writing, “Thank you for making me laugh so hard at something you said, that my muscles ached, and tears poured down my face EVERY DAY. Thank you for your open heart in a six way relationship that required compromise. And a lot of ‘talking.'”
“Thank you for trusting me. Thank you for all I learned about GRACE and LOVE through knowing you,” the mom-of-one’s post continued. “Thank you for the time I got to have with you, Matthew.”
