Friends actor says they’re ‘grateful’ they weren’t one of sitcom’s lead stars

Recurring star was happy to appear in just 13 episodes of the hit series

A supporting Friends cast member has said they are “grateful” to not have played one of the sitcom’s leads.

Jessica Hecht appeared in 13 episodes of the comedy series, playing Susan Bunch, the woman who Ross’s first wife Carol (Jane Sibbett) divorced him to be with.

Hecht, who is also known for her role in acclaimed US drama Breaking Bad, said she reflects on her time on Friends with positivity – but was happy to have played a minor recurring role.

Friends first aired in 1994 and ran for 10 seasons and 236 episodes until its finale in 2004.

The show became a cultural phenomenon, with its viewers following the lives of its stars David Schwimmer, Jennifer Aniston, Matt LeBlanc, Courteney Cox, Matthew Perry and Lisa Kudrow as closely in real life as they did on TV.

Hecht, 59, told PEOPLE: “I’m grateful that I wasn’t a lead character in many ways, because the responsibility of that is more than most people could manage.”

She made her debut on the series in its second episode, which aired in 1994, and returned in each season up until its sixth, which was released in 2000.

The actor said of the show’s legacy: “I don’t watch things that I’ve made more than just to say, ‘Oh God, OK. That show affecting so many people’s lives and the actors on that show affecting so many people’s lives...’ I watch it with awe, and I understand the need for that.”

Jessica Hecht as Susan Bunch in ‘Friends’ (NBC)

Before starring in Friends, Hecht appeared in other sitcoms including Seinfeld and Party of Five. More recently, she has gone on to appear in shows such as The Good Wife and The Affair.

Hecht also played the former girlfriend of Bryan Cranston’s Walter White in Breaking Bad, as well as a researcher working with Connor Roy (Alan Ruck) in the HBO hit show Succession.

ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.

ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.

She can next be seen opposite June Squibb in Scarlett Johansson’s directorial debut Eleanor the Great, which recently premiered at Cannes Film Festival.

In an interview last year, Kudrow – who played main cast member Phoebe Buffay – said that the cast of Friends didn’t hit it off right away.

The actor said the cast “worked hard at being friends”, adding: “If someone said something or did something, it didn’t get too big because it was, ‘Can I talk to you?’”

Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe in ‘Friends’ (NBC)

Although, true to the awkward on-screen nature of her character, Kudrow said it was “usually not her” who would start the conversation as she “never knew that was allowed” at the time.

“I had to learn to be like, ‘Can I talk to you about something?’” she explained.