‘Friends’ director reveals which actor he struggled to work with most
nme.comFriends director James Burrows has revealed which star from the show was the hardest to work with.In his new memoir, Directed by James Burrows, he admitted that he struggled to work with guest star Helen Baxendale — who played Ross’ English wife Emily — due to her not being “particularly funny”.Of the episode ‘The One with All the Rugby’, Burrows recalled: “She was nice but not particularly funny. [David] Schwimmer had no one to bounce off.
It was like clapping with one hand.”He continued: “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.“Often, you can’t recast, because of tight shooting deadlines or other logistical considerations.
You don’t cast anyone to be a straw man, unless it’s for one episode.”The director went on to stress the importance of casting someone who can “get laughs”, adding: “Sometimes you start an arc and it ain’t working out, so you have to get rid of that person.
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