Lisa Kudrow he’s not shy about how he feels about today’s sitcoms. In his own words, he’s not buying it. The ‘Friends’ star who made Phoebe Buffay legendary says modern comedies don’t have the zest they used to. With TV changing rapidly, with streaming, AI scripts, weird new formats everywhere, Kudrow is adamant. He wants to bring back the bold jokes that made people squirm and laugh at the same time.
Lisa Kudrow calls sitcoms “safe”: What did she say?
When Lisa Kudrow sat down for an interview to talk about bringing back “The Comeback,” Kudrow realized what’s missing from modern sitcoms. During a chat with Interview Magazine, he threw some “shade” at “safe” multi-cam shows, saying most are afraid to take risks. For him, it must be a comedy surprise. “Did they seriously say that?” those moments when you think But lately, he says, shows are avoiding anything that might be uncomfortable.Speaking to Interview Magazine, Kudrow explained. He misses the days when comedy was gritty and fearless. “30 Rock and Seinfeld and Friends were very funny and very well written,” he said. But when it comes to new shows, he said: “I’m not attracted to new multi-camera sitcoms in front of the audience because I don’t buy it. I don’t know if it’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 think we’ve been too afraid to make jokes that might make people uncomfortable.” Asked more about his opinion, Kudrow explained: “Really good, not tame jokes.” He added: “The jokes are, ‘I can’t believe you just said that.'” Comedy is a surprise. You need things you didn’t see coming.’
About ‘Friends’
One can see where Kudrow is coming from if they saw ‘Friends’ and still remember it. That show broke the mold of television comedy shows. It ran from 1994 to 2004, following six confused and lovable New Yorkers. With the success of the show, the actors (Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, David Schwimmer, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry and Kudrow himself) became household names. ‘Friends’ was about characters who weren’t afraid of awkward and weird humor or mistakes. Timing was everything, and the live audience gave him an energy you don’t really see. The ensemble style of the show is reminiscent of sitcoms today.Back then, sitcoms thrived on chaos and characters that might surprise you. From Phoebe’s quirkiness to Chandler’s sarcasm, they made things unpredictable. Now, the shows are sleeker, live-streamed and built to keep global audiences engaged. That means faster plots, safer jokes, and less live audience feedback.Kudrow isn’t saying that everything new is bad. It’s just… different. And the comedy feels like it’s lost something raw and dangerous along the way.
Lisa Kudrow: Life and Career Beyond “Friends”
As for Kudrow herself, her career took a rather unusual turn after ‘Friends’. Born in LA, Per Person, Kudrow studied biology before acting. Phoebe Buffay was her leading role, and won her an Emmy. After ‘Friends’, he didn’t chase big mainstream gigs. He created ‘The Comeback’, a satire on fame that is as honest as it is strange. He did ‘Web Therapy’, a highly improvisational web series. He appeared in films such as ‘Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion’ and ‘The Opposite of Sex’.As for ‘The Comeback’, in the show’s third and final season, Kudrow’s Valerie is being written by an AI program, ‘How’s That?’ accepts the lead role in a new sitcom. As the reality show cameras follow him again in this final phase of his career, the actor and producer must navigate the many cultural terrains of Hollywood in 2026.‘The Comeback’ premiered in 2005, and in 2014 the mockumentary reality show returned for a long-awaited second season. Season 3 of the show premiered on HBO in March.
