Yahoo News ‘Friends’ Director James Burrows Spills It On Why Emily Was Quickly Written Off The Show
Friends director James Burrows never found Helen Baxendale, who played Ross Geller’s wife, “particularly funny,” and felt she lacked chemistry with actor David Schwimmer.
That’s one of the revelations in his memoir, Directed By James Burrows, a collection of memories from the veteran director.
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Burrows hints that the ’90s sitcom nearly recast Baxendale, who played Ross’ wife, Emily.
“She was nice, but not particularly funny,” Burrows wrote of Baxendale.
Burrows believed that Baxendale and Schwimmer lacked natural on-screen chemistry compared to Ross and Rachel, Jennifer Aniston’s character.
“Schwimmer had no one to bounce off. It was like clapping with one hand. In sitcoms and any type of romantic comedy, the funny is just as important as the chemistry. We discovered that any new girlfriend for Ross needed to be as funny as Rachel.”
What saved Emily were the show’s tight deadlines.
“Often, you can’t recast, because of tight shooting deadlines or other logistical considerations,” he wrote. “You need someone who gets laughs. Sometimes you start an arc and it ain’t working out, so you have to get rid of that person. If it’s a day player, it’s a quick goodbye.”
Burrows noted that the reverse was true, adding, “If there’s chemistry, the writers go to work to figure out some way of keeping the actor.”
Baxendale’s Emily was first introduced in Season 4, appearing in a total of 14 episodes. Emily and Ross married in Season 5. But Ross nearly blew it, uttering Rachel’s name during the vows instead of hers. Emily eventually was written off the show in Season 5 when Emily and Ross called it quits after a rocky marriage.
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