Friends had various special guest stars over the course of 10 seasons, and one of its most memorable ones was Julia Roberts, who had one rule that made her appearance even better. Created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, Friends took viewers to New York City to follow a group of six young adults as they did their best to juggle their social, personal, and professional lives, all this while also dealing with everything adulthood threw their way. The ups and downs that Monica, Chandler, Phoebe, Joey, Rachel, and Ross went through made Friends one of the greatest TV shows ever, and its arrival in the world of streaming has expanded its fanbase.
The audience followed the main characters quite closely through a variety of situations, mostly from their love lives, as they all dated different people before settling with their “lobsters” (except Joey, who finally found his person in his spinoff TV series), and not all of them were healthy relationships. Some of their partners and dates were played by special guest stars, as was the case of Chandler’s date Susie Moss, played by Julia Roberts. Although she only appeared in one episode (“The One After the Super Bowl, Part 2”), she became one of Friends’ best and most memorable guest stars, and the one rule Roberts had for her appearance made it even better, as she asked to be part of Chandler’s storyline, and even made a very specific request to Matthew Perry.
Julia Roberts Was One Of Friends' Best Guest Stars
In his memoir Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing, Perry revealed Roberts’ condition to appear in Friends, explaining that she said she would only do it if she was in his storyline – however, he had to “woo her”. Roberts told Perry that if he “adequately explained quantum physics to her” she would take the offer to appear in Friends, and the following day, he sent her a paper with what she asked, so she played Susie Moss, a hair and make-up dresser who Chandler met in elementary school. Susie and Chandler reconnected after coming across on the set of a movie and started dating, but it was all a revenge plan from Susie, as Chandler pulled up her skirt in fourth grade, for which she was called “Susie Underpants” until she was 18.
At the time of her appearance in Friends, Julia Roberts was already a big star, mostly from the romantic comedy genre, thanks to movies like Mystic Pizza and Pretty Woman, but her role in Friends was unlike any of her previous ones. Roberts seized her comedic skills, especially in the scene where Susie gets her revenge by leaving Chandler only with her panties in the bathroom of the restaurant, allowing the audience to see a different side of her. The chemistry between Roberts and Perry was also very evident in their performances, and even though Susie only appeared once, Roberts made her one of the most memorable guest characters in Friends.
Julia Roberts Was In Friends' Biggest Ever Episode
Friends broke various records throughout its run, and even though its final episode is one of the most-watched series finales of all time, it wasn’t the show’s biggest episode. Friends’ record-breaking episode was the two-part story “The One After the Super Bowl”, which aired after the 1996 Super Bowl (though the episodes had nothing to do with this event). “The One After the Superbowl” attracted 52.9 million viewers and it’s the highest-rated Super Bowl lead-out episode ever, though it wasn’t well-received by critics. Although the episode’s guest stars are what contributed to its popularity, critics found these to be “a blatant ploy to boost ratings” and the characters’ storylines were “unfunny” and felt like “lazy writing”. Although “The One After the Super Bowl” wasn’t a favorite among critics, that doesn’t take away its record-breaking numbers and its unforgettable celebrity guest stars.
