“I mainly hung out in the background”: Paul Rudd’s Honest Experience on FRIENDS is the Opposite of What Fan Wants to Hear
- Paul Rudd joined 'Friends' in its final season when the show was struggling with its storylines.
- Rudd admitted he mostly observed the original cast's interactions from a distance, as he felt a bit foreign sometimes.
- Rudd continues to quietly make impacts off-screen, most recently handing out water to voters.
Friends is one, if not the most popular, sitcom in the world. The show had entertained an entire generation for years, and its cast members are still synonymous with their characters. Among them, Paul Rudd has been one who got to be a part of the iconic show in its last season.
Friends fans remember Rudd for his portrayal of Mike Hannigan and his romance with Phoebe Buffay who was played by Lisa Kudrow. However, unlike the personality of Rudd’s character, the behind-the-scenes scenarios seemed not as colorful for Rudd as one would expect.
Paul Rudd’s Unexpected Experience on Friends
Paul Rudd joined Friends in the ninth season, which was a struggling time as the show was going through storyline issues. Mike Hannigan came into that struggling phase and brought in some fresh energy on the screen.
However, although Rudd was a part of such a popular show, his actual experience on the set was not as flashy as fans might expect. In an earlier interview with The Guardian, Rudd shared his experience of being a new member of an already-established cast.
The process [of making a sitcom] seemed really foreign to me, so it’s kind of a strange memory for me. I mainly hung out in the background and talked to Gunther. It was amazing but kind of like being the Jew with English parents in Kansas – that’s the way I felt on Friends.
Rudd’s experience became more awkward during the last days of the show. While most of the cast was getting teary and emotional on the last day of the shoot, Rudd tried to avoid that scenario as much as he could. In an interview on the UK radio show Heart Breakfast, he said,
They were all crying, it was all emotional, and I was just like, ‘Whoa.’ I mean, I felt very privileged. But I also was like, ‘I just want to sit back here and not get in the way.’
Rudd admitted feeling like getting “a front-row seat to things” that he was “not supposed to see.” However, although Rudd might have felt foreign on set, his character certainly helped the sitcom to get back on track in a difficult ninth season.
Paul Rudd Continues to Be Hollywood’s Nice Guy
Rudd’s humble attitude toward his Friends role aligns with his image as one of the most approachable actors in Hollywood, which he maintains even to this day in unexpected ways. His down-to-earth personality can be observed during the ongoing 2024 election season.
During an election day at Temple University in Pennsylvania, Rudd was seen distributing water bottles to voters in the polling queues. He told during an MSNBC broadcast,
I just wanted to give people water. They’re waiting in line for a long time, and it’s a wonderful thing that all these young people are out voting.
When asked about his feelings regarding the election, Rudd’s response was as modest as his nature. He said, “I feel good about handing out some waters.” His words sound similar to the way he approached his Friends role– making positive contributions without seeking attention.
Moreover, this was not the first time he did something like this. He did something similar in 2020 at the Barclays Center in New York to hand out cookies to voters who were waiting in the rain.
All seasons of Friends are available to stream on Max.
