Friends 'messed up' David Schwimmer's personal life 'for years' - it was 'jarring'
Late actor Matthew Perry admitted his struggle with fame, an experience he shared with fellow Friends star David Schwimmer, who also claimed it ruined his relationships before stardom.
David Schwimmer shot to fame in 1994 by portraying paleontologist Ross Geller in Friends. The six lead actors of the NBC sitcom felt the effects of fame immediately after the pilot premiered to almost 22 million US viewers. By the final season, the TV actors were raking in over $1 million per episode, but the fortune came with a price. Schwimmer revealed how his relationships suffered as a result.
‘The effect of celebrity made me want to hide,’ says Friends’ David Schwimmer
During an interview on The Hollywood Reporter‘s Awards Chatter podcast, Schwimmer, 56, spoke about the difficulties of his newfound fame when Friends debuted on September 22, 1994.
“It was pretty jarring and it messed with my relationship to other people in a way that took years, I think, for me to kind of adjust to and become comfortable with,” he recalled.
David continued to explain that as an actor, his craft requires confidence and the ability to observe others, but the sudden recognition had the opposite effect as it forced him to hide.
“I realized after a while that I was no longer watching people; I was trying to hide,” Schwimmer explained. “So I was trying to figure out: How do I be an actor in this new world, in this new situation? How do I do my job? So that was tricky.”
The celebrity continued: “I didn’t feel like my character had changed, but suddenly people were treating me in a very, very different way, that sometimes was flattering, but mostly very evasive.”
Unlike his fellow Friends stars, who went on to star in countless projects, David chose to tackle roles behind the camera and theater. He went on to become a director and starred on Broadway and the West End. Who could forget he is the voice of Melman the giraffe in the Madagascar franchise?
Schwimmer wasn’t the only star on set who struggled with the sudden rise to fame. Matthew Perry, who tragically died on Saturday (October 28, 2023) also found the unexpected popularity difficult to handle.
However, his drug and alcohol use became a major obstacle for the sitcom star. So much so that the 54-year-old said he’d trade his fame and fortune to avoid addiction.
David Schwimmer married ex-wife Zoe Buckman in 2010
Although David and Jennifer Aniston admitted to having crushes on each other during the early days of Friends, the co-stars never dated. The actor was in a relationship with Australian singer Natalie Imbruglia in the late 1990s, before marrying British artist Zoe Buckman in 2010 after a three-year romance.
Their daughter, Cleo Buckman Schwimmer was born May 8, 2011.
David and Zoe confirmed their split in a joint statement in April 2017: “Our priority is, of course, our daughter’s happiness and well-being during this challenging time,” they announced.
If you’ve been affected by this story, you can contact American Addiction Centers on (877) 686-7688 or Talk To Frank on 0300 123 6600 in the UK.
Related Topics
MORE CELEBRITY STORIES
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pLHLnpmroaSuwaqwwaKrZ5ufonxzfJFsZmppX2V%2FcLLRopynnKNiuqa%2F0p6bZq2gYrGiwsidZKybmKy2rrnEq6pmqJWnwLC6wKVkpaGWmnqnu9FmsJ6Zoqh6qsCMsJisZZqWv7O1zaBm