Oh, this is gonna ruffle some feathers!
Lisa Kudrow is looking back at the golden age of sitcoms… and let’s just say she’s not exactly laughing at what’s on TV today! The Friends alum is getting real about why she just can’t get into modern multi-camera comedies anymore, and her reasoning? According to her, today’s shows are playing it way too safe!
Related: Lisa ‘Recently Found’ Secret Note From Matthew Perry In Gift He Gave Her Over 2 Decades Ago!
In a candid new chat with Interview Magazine, Lisa didn’t hold back when talking about whether sitcoms are evolving or fading into the background. And honestly, her take might hit a nerve for a lot of creators out there trying to keep things “safe” for audiences. She said:
“I wish they were evolving. 30 Rock and Seinfeld and Friends were really funny and really well written. But I’m not drawn to new sitcoms that are multi-camera in front of an audience because I’m not buying it. I don’t know if that’s just because I’ve seen too many single-camera sitcoms. I think we need to get back to being able to tell jokes. I feel like we’ve been too afraid to make jokes that might make people uncomfortable.”
Oof. Did she just say what everyone in Hollywood is thinking but too scared to admit?!
Lisa doubled down on that spicy opinion, making it clear that comedy, at its core, is supposed to push boundaries and catch people off guard — not tiptoe around every possible reaction. She noted:
“But the really good ones, they’re not tame jokes. They’re jokes that are kind of, ‘I can’t believe you just said that.’ Comedy is about surprise. You need things you didn’t see coming.”
She’s not wrong! Some of the most iconic sitcom moments ever came from jokes that made audiences gasp before they laughed. Think about it: would Friends even be Friends if it played everything totally safe?
Speaking of Friends, Lisa also reflected on her beloved character Phoebe Buffay, who fans famously labeled as a “ditz” back in the day. But according to Lisa, that label never quite sat right with her:
“At the time, it was like, ‘She’s such a ditz. How is it that you only play ditzes?’ And I thought, ‘Is she a ditz?’ To me, she wasn’t. In 1994, it was like, ‘I love her. She’s such a ditz.’ And it’s like, yeah, okay, that was what a ditz was to us. Someone who wasn’t toeing the line… But she wasn’t stupid.”
And honestly, she’s got a point there, too! Phoebe wasn’t dumb! She was quirky, unpredictable, and totally unapologetic. Which, ironically, is exactly the kind of energy Lisa seems to think is missing from today’s sitcom landscape.
So, now for the big question: is Kudrow calling out an uncomfortable truth? Have sitcoms really become too cautious for their own good? Or is comedy just evolving with the times? We wanna know what YOU think!
[Image via WENN]
