'I'm Embarrassed': Marta Kauffman on Lack of Diversity in 'Friends'

Marta Kauffman has now said that it was difficult for her to receive criticism for the show.

Friends 

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The hit sitcom, Friends, starred Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry, and David Schwimmer and had an all-white cast. The co-creator of Friends, Marta Kauffman, has now come out to say that it was difficult for her to receive criticism for the lack of diversity in the show.

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, she said, "Admitting and accepting guilt is not easy. It's painful looking at yourself in the mirror. I'm embarrassed that I didn't know better 25 years ago."

"It was after what happened to George Floyd that I began to wrestle with my having bought into systemic racism in ways I was never aware of. That was really the moment that I began to examine the ways I had participated. I knew then I needed to course-correct," she added.

The show was based in New York and followed the story of six friends in their mid-twenties. The show showcased the dynamics of the group as they navigated the struggles of adulthood and more. The show ran from 1994 to 2004 but rarely featured a character of colour and the show has received a lot of flak for the same.