EntertainmentWhy Joey was turned into a donkey in the series “Friends”Theory discussed by fans for years was finally commented on by director James Burrows, who detailed the situation in his book today at 3:10 pm

One of the biggest hits of Friends it was the construction of his squad. The series brought together Jennifer Aniston (as Rachel Green), Courteney Cox (Monica Geller), Lisa Kudrow (Phoebe Buffay), Matt LeBlanc (Joey Tribbiani), Matthew Perry (Chandler Bing) and David Schwimmer (Ross Geller), six protagonists who had charisma and chemistry together.

Not surprisingly, the production broadcast between 1994 and 2004 promoted a true revolution on TV. Winner of six awards Emmyone Golden Globe, two SAG Awards and 56 other trophies, the series reached more than 52 million viewers in the United States in its final episode — it remains to this day in fifth place on the list of series that accumulated the most audience in the final episode.

To make the cast “work”, some changes were made. One of them has to do with Joey Tribbiani. The character of Matt LeBlanc he went through a curious process of “dumbing down” throughout the first years of the show, in addition to having highlighted some characteristics such as his acting career, propensity to eat and busy love life.

Why, specifically, Joey Was he transformed into some intellectually disadvantaged person? Fans have theorized for years that this decision would have been made so that his personality would become a little different from the other characters — and this hypothesis has now been confirmed by the filmmaker James Burrows.

The director of several chapters of Friends — including the pilot — spoke about the subject in his autobiography, Directed by James Burrows (via ScreenRant). He said he passed on a suggestion to the co-creators David Crane It is Marta Kauffman: Joey it was very similar to Chandler Bing, character of Matthew Perry.

“I just had one observation to David It is Martha: Joey It is Chandler they were very similar. In the original incarnation of Joey, he was very intelligent. They ‘dumbed it down’ a bit so the two characters wouldn’t get in each other’s way.”

The change, in the end, worked. Curiously, Joey was the only character to receive a spin-off series, as his story was practically the only one to remain open among the six protagonists. However, the series — simply called Joey — won only two seasons and was considered a ratings failure. Maybe the character really needed the dynamic with his peers.

Another behind-the-scenes revelation from Friends

Still in your book, James Burrows made another curious revelation about the behind-the-scenes of Friends. The director told (via Rolling Stone USA) that the actress Helen Baxendale was almost dismissed after her casting as Emily, girlfriend and later fiancée of the character Ross Geller in the plot.

The problem of Baxendale it was precisely the restricted chemistry with the actor David Schwimmerin the view of Burrows — which was shared by other behind-the-scenes professionals Friends. The actress lacked humor.

“She was nice, but not particularly funny. Schwimmer I had no one to interact with. It was like clapping with one hand.”

According to the director, there is a particularity in the romantic comedy genre — regardless of whether it is a film or series — that needs to be preserved. Otherwise, the public rejects it.

“In sitcoms and any type of romantic comedy, humor is just as important as chemistry. We discovered that any new girlfriend for Ross needed to be just as funny. Rachel.”

Still according Burrowsthere was the possibility of finding another actress to play Emily. Although this was considered, bureaucratic issues prevented it from going ahead: there were very tight filming deadlines.

“You need someone to make you laugh. Sometimes you start an arc and it doesn’t work out, so you have to get rid of that person. The opposite is also true. If there is chemistry, the writers will need to work to figure out a way to keep the actor.”