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Lisa Kudrow recently shared her perspective on a long-standing debate among “Friends” fans.
The actress, best known for her role on the iconic ’90s sitcom, addressed the contentious issue of Ross and Rachel’s relationship dynamics.
For years, viewers have been divided over whether Ross (played by David Schwimmer) was in the right to sleep with another woman after he and Rachel (portrayed by Jennifer Aniston) had declared they were “on a break.”
While appearing on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” this Monday, Kudrow hesitated, saying, “I’m afraid now to bring it up.”
Jimmy Fallon, the show’s host, pressed on, asking, “What is your take? Were they on a break?”
“Well, no. But it’s beyond that,” Kudrow explained. “It’s beyond break or not— he was a bad boyfriend.”
The audience immediately erupted in applause.
“Oh, you agree! Oh, I feel better,” the “Comeback” actress gushed. “Thank you. Thank you for this. Thank you, all of you.”
Kudrow further explained her reasoning.
“We did the reunion just like five years ago… we were all so like, ‘They were on a break.’ Like, ‘Rachel, that hysterical shrew, not letting him sleep with someone and won’t get back together,’” the “Romy and Michele” actress recalled. “She shouldn’t have gotten back with him because he was horrible.”
When Fallon asked Kudrow if Schwimmer knew how his guest felt, she stayed quiet.
“He knows now,” the late night host quipped.
Back in 2020, Schwimmer gave his own take on the situation, telling Fallon at the time, “It’s not even a question. They were on a break.”
For her part, while promoting an apparel line for charity in 2021, Aniston argued: “For the record… we were SO not on a break.”
In Season 3, episode 16, titled, “The One with the Morning After,” Rachel accused Ross of cheating on her, to which he denied.
Ross claimed he thought they had broken up when he hooked up with someone else and famously stated, “We were on a break.”
The line went on to be used many times throughout the series.
“Friends” ran for 10 seasons from 1994 until 2004 and along with Kudrow, Aniston and Schwimmer, the sitcom starred Matthew Perry, Courteney Cox and Matt LeBlanc.
Perry died in October 2023 at age 54 from the “acute effects of ketamine.” His cause of death was ruled as accidental.
In 2024, Kudrow revealed to the Hollywood Reporter she started rewatching the NBC series to “celebrate” Perry.
For years, the sitcom star was unable to watch “Friends,” calling it too “embarrassing” to see herself act.
“If I make it about Matthew, then that’s OK,” Kudrow expressed. “And it’s just celebrating how hilarious he was — and that is what I want to remember [about him].”
Despite disagreeing with Schwimmer’s take on his relationship, Kudrow added that she was “laughing out loud” at how funny her co-stars were.
“I’m blown away by Courteney Cox. I’m blown away by [Jennifer Aniston],” the actress mused. “Matthew, obviously, is just uniquely hilarious. No one ever knew that cadence or comedic rhythm before him. Matt LeBlanc is hilarious. And David Schwimmer, too. Sometimes I even laugh at what I’ve done.”