While fondly recalling her time on Friends, Aisha Tyler recalled the “sweet” thing the late Matthew Perry said to her after taping her first episode.
Fast forward to 2003, and Tyler was doing stand-up comedy and had seen her television career take off as host of Talk Soup and the dating reality show The 5th Wheel, when she landed the role of Dr. Charlie Wheeler, the love interest of Ross (David Schwimmer) and Joey (Matt LeBlanc).
After finishing her first episode on the show, she and the others were waiting backstage where she was going to take her first bow in front of the live audience when Perry casually shared some encouraging words with her.
“Right before I walked out at the end of my first taping, Matthew Perry leaned over and said, ‘Get ready for your life to change,'” something she will always remember during an appearance on the show. And that’s what you REALLY missed podcast.
It is something of a tradition for actors in a comedy filmed in front of a studio audience to return after the final scene to take a bow as a sign of gratitude and respect.
While fondly recalling her time on Friends, Aisha Tyler recalled the “sweet” line the late Matthew Perry told her after taping her first episode; seen in 2004
“Right before I walked out at the end of my first recording, Matthew Perry leaned over and said, ‘Get ready for your life to change,'” something she will forever cherish, during an appearance on the podcast And That’s What You REALLY Missed.
That little comment from his late co-star ended up having a huge impact on Tyler’s confidence and psyche going forward in his Hollywood career.
“It was a very sweet and generous thing,” said Tyler, 53. “It wasn’t like, ‘Oh, oh.’ It was like, ‘This is exciting. This will be exciting for you.’ And I’ve never forgotten that moment because it really changed my life.”
Mind you, she had little acting experience at the time, so she had to audition with Schwimmer, and was in fact taking acting lessons at the time, in 2003.
“When I auditioned for Friends, I had seen every episode of Friends, almost every one,” he admitted during the podcast, as reported by People. “That didn’t give me confidence. It just let me know that I can tell a Friends joke, but will I do it right?”
By being attentive while on the set of Friends, Tyler was able to absorb all the different acting techniques, nuances, and overall creativity.
“I learned how to tell a joke perfectly just by watching ‘Perry’ work,” he confessed during the conversation, which seems to have worked considering the result.
Tyler maintains that he is still reaping the benefits of the things he learned from his Friends audition and a reading with Schwimmer.
That little comment from his late co-star ended up having a huge impact on Tyler’s confidence and psyche going forward in his Hollywood career; seen in February.
“It was a very sweet and generous thing to say,” said Tyler, 53. “It wasn’t like, ‘Oh, oh.’ He said, ‘This is exciting. It’s going to be exciting for you.’ And I’ve never forgotten that moment because it really changed my life.” Seen in 2004
Since then, she has starred in television series such as CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2004–2005), 24 (2005), Ghost Whisperer (2005–2006), Archer (2009–2023), XIII: The Series (2011–2012), Criminal Minds (2015–2020, 2022–present), as well as serving as co-host of the daytime talk show The Talk (2011–2017), as well as in several films.
Perry, who suffered from severe drug and alcohol addictions throughout his life, was found unconscious in the hot tub of his Los Angeles home and was pronounced dead on the evening of October 28.
The official cause of death was attributed to “acute effects of ketamine,” which doctors use to treat depression and manage pain, and buprenorphine, drowning and coronary artery disease as contributing causes.
The original plan was for Tyler to appear in four episodes of Friends as Charlie, but he ultimately starred in nine, across seasons nine and ten, becoming the first black person to have a recurring role on the legendary sitcom.
In 2003, Tyler landed the role of Dr. Charlie Wheeler, the love interest of Ross (David Schwimmer) and Joey (Matt LeBlanc).
Tyler had little acting experience at the time, which led her to read for an audition with Schwimmer, and she was in fact taking acting lessons at the time in 2003.
Perry was just 54 when she tragically passed away at her Los Angeles home in October 2023, two decades after they met during her audition process.
Tyler, a San Francisco native, went on to describe the late actor as someone who had “unparalleled gentleness and generosity of spirit.”
Friends premiered in September 1994 and became one of the most successful sitcoms by the end of its 10-season run in May 2004.
