Phoebe wanted to quit 'F.R.I.E.N.D.S' after the third season
What's the story
F.R.I.E.N.D.S is a sitcom that gets love till date. Its lead characters Phoebe, Joey, Chandler, Monica, Ross and Rachel helped it last a stunning 10 seasons. However, we could have lost Phoebe Buffay in the third season itself had Joey Tribbiani not stepped in. That's right! Lisa Kudrow (Phoebe) apparently wanted to quit the sitcom but stopped after listening to Matt LeBlanc's (Joey) advice.
Revelation
Kudrow said this on 'Hiking With Kevin' web series
This shocking fact was shared by Kudrow herself while talking to Saturday Night Live alum Kevin Nealon last year. She was a guest on Nealon's YouTube web series Hiking With Kevin in 2019, and that's where Kudrow said how she was facing a lot of difficulties in associating with the character. "I had played dumb girls, sure, but it wasn't really me," Kudrow said.
Context
"Third season in, I was struggling so much"
She told Nealon, "I feel like, 'S—, I tricked 'em at the audition. I was the only one who could cope with the audition process and that's how I got it,' I think. So I had to work hard at being Phoebe. And then, like, third season in, I was struggling so much." And that is when LeBlanc came to Kudrow's (and our) rescue!
Joey's witty too!
Don't need to work as hard. Relax: LeBlanc to Kudrow
LeBlanc, who played the hilarious slacker Joey in the show, told Kudrow that she was "working too hard" to become Phoebe when the fact was she could ace it only if she relaxed. "You've been doing this f—ing character for three years. You're working too hard. That's your problem: You don't need to work as hard. Relax," LeBlanc had told Kudrow back then.
Advice worked
Kudrow won an Emmy when 'F.R.I.E.N.D.S' completed Season 4
Thankfully, Kudrow listened to LeBlanc back then. Because, completion of F.R.I.E.N.D.S Season 4 saw her bag an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. Kudrow kept on perfecting Phoebe's role till the end of the series in 2004. Thanks to LeBlanc's priceless suggestion, we finally watched her character evolve with various shades of empathy, compromise and not to forget, friendship.