Every Actor Who Appeared On Friends & Seinfeld

Every Actor Who Appeared On Friends & Seinfeld

As two of the most popular sitcoms of the 1990s, it’s not surprising that Friends and Seinfeld had so many actors appear on both NBC shows.

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As two of the most popular sitcoms of the 1990s, plenty of actors appeared on both Friends and Seinfeld in their heydays. The shows are still regarded today as two of the most popular sitcoms of all time, both of whom were also NBC series competing with one another from 1994-1998. Seinfeld (1989-1998) and Friends (1994-2004) also followed fairly similar premises, detailing the daily minutiae of a group of New York City 20-t0-30-something friends.

The arguments over which of the two NBC sitcoms reign supreme still occur today, and have become even more present as the shows find audiences in new generations by becoming more easily accessible on streaming services like Netflix and HBO Max. While the shows were competing for top spots and viewership under NBC, many were surprised Friends and Seinfeld never featured a direct overlap to place them in the same universe. While Jerry never drank coffee at Central Perk nor Rachel at Monk’s, Friends and Seinfeld do have a shared universe through separate crossovers on NBC’s Mad About You.

Aside from shared-universe connections, Friends and Seinfeld are also heavily intertwined by the numerous actors who appeared on both shows – some of whom even began their careers from a guest role one or the other. A few of the actors who appeared on both would become bona fide stars later on, while another pattern persists of celebrities making minor cameos on Seinfeld pre-fame and appearing on Friends after becoming household names. Here’s a breakdown of all of the actors who appeared on both Friends and Seinfeld over the years.

Courteney Cox

Before Courteney Cox became a household name for her main role as Monica Geller on Friends and later Gale Weathers in the Scream franchise, she made an appearance on Seinfeld as one of Jerry’s girlfriends. She was featured in every episode of Friends and her performance was highly praised, but Cox was the only one of the main Friends actors to not be Emmy-nominated for her role. Her appearance on Seinfeld was in the season 5 episode “The Wife,” in which she portrayed the titular role. Cox’s character, Meryl, was Jerry Seinfeld’s girlfriend for the episode in which they posed as husband and wife to get a 25 percent discount at the dry cleaners. As with all of Jerry’s Seinfeld relationships, he and Courteney Cox break up by the end of the episode for a reason as trivial as bringing another woman’s laundry to the dry cleaners.

Jason Alexander

Whereas Courteney Cox made her Seinfeld debut before her Friends breakout, Seinfeld star Jason Alexander made his Friends cameo a few years after his NBC sitcom’s finale. Alexander is best known for his nine-season main role as George Costanza on Seinfeld, Jerry’s neurotic best friend based on show creator Larry David. After Seinfeld ended and the main cast went their separate ways, Alexander had the most difficult time getting away from his iconic Costanza role. This led to a career primarily made up of various cameos and small roles, such as his one-episode stint on Friends season 7. Alexander appeared on Friends’ 2001 episode “The One Where Rosita Dies,” in which he plays Earl, a suicidal supply manager who receives a telemarketing call from Lisa Kudrow’s Phoebe Buffay.

Bob Balaban

Friends and Seinfeld are just blips on Bob Balaban’s filmography, as the revered actor is better known for his frequent film collaborations with directors Wes Anderson and Christopher Guest. Balaban first appeared on Seinfeld season 4 in a recurring role as Russell Dalrymple, the show’s fictional president of NBC. His role primarily consisted of meetings with George and Jerry when they attempted to pitch a sitcom. Balaban later guest-starred on Friends for one 1999 episode, albeit in a fairly important role. In Friends’ season 3 episode “The One With Joey’s Bag,” Balaban plays Frank Buffay, the absent father of Phoebe who shows up at her grandmother’s funeral.

Maggie Wheeler

It’s extremely difficult to forget Maggie Wheeler’s recurring role on Friends, thanks to her iconic “Oh. My. God.,” catchphrase. Wheeler portrayed Janice Goralnik, the off-and-on girlfriend of Chandler Bing who notably annoys Friends’ main characters. She became the third most frequent recurring actor on Friends, tied with Christina Pickles (Judy Geller), having appeared in 19 episodes and at least once in each season. Before landing her iconic Friends role, Wheeler made a one-episode appearance on Seinfeld’s season 3 episode “The Fix-Up” as Cynthia, one of Elaine’s friends that she and Jerry set up on a date with George.

Jennifer Coolidge

Just like Maggie Wheeler’s fictional Janice intonations, Jennifer Coolidge has a voice that’s hard to forget. Before Coolidge became a household name with an iconic voice from the American Pie movies and Legally Blonde, she made her first-ever television appearance on a season 5 episode of Seinfeld. She appeared in a small role during “The Masseuse,” portraying Jodi, the titular character and Jerry’s girlfriend of the episode. As a professional masseuse, Jerry was constantly tortured by the fact that she wouldn’t give him a massage, inevitably leading to their end-of-the-episode breakup. Coolidge was pre-fame on Seinfeld, but by the time she made her way onto Friends, she was a household name. She appeared on Friends’ season 10 episode “The One with Ross’s Tan” as Amanda, Monica and Phoebe’s old friend who bothered them endlessly by growing a fake British accent. Ironically, Coolidge would later star in Friends’ spinoff Joey in the main role of Bobbie Morganstern before it was canceled.

Kristin Davis

A rarity for many Seinfeld guest-stars, Kristin Davis had a two-episode arc on the NBC series as Jenna in seasons 8 and 9. Davis’s character was one of Jerry’s only girlfriends to last more than one installment during the iconic episodes “The Pothole” and “The Butter Shave.” As always, she and Jerry broke up in season 8 due to Jerry being disgusted by all of her toilet’s contents exploding on her. When she next returned in Seinfeld season 9, she was dating Jerry’s annoying comic colleague Kenny Bania. Later, while she was also enjoying a steady and iconic career on HBO’s Sex and the City as Charlotte York, Kristin Davis made guest appearances on Friends. She showed up in Friends season 6 as Erin, one of Joey’s dates whom Rachel and Phoebe desperately wanted him to continue seeing.

Richard Fancy

Still his best-known role to date, Richard Fancy played the recurring role of publisher Mr. Elliot Lippman on Seinfeld, Elaine’s first major boss during the series. He appeared for a total of 11 episodes beginning in season 3, coming back occasionally both during and after Elaine’s employment at Pendant Publishing. He also returned for Seinfeld’s divisive series finale in 1998. While still on Seinfeld, Fancy had a small role in Friends’ season 4 episode, “The One Where They’re Going to a Party,” playing Mr. Fosner, a Bloomingdale executive who interviews Rachel for a promotion.

Jon Favreau

The iconic actor, Disney+ The Mandalorian creator, and Iron Man director once had a career that consisted of small cameos and recurring roles on popular ‘90s sitcoms. Though Favreau’s 1994 Seinfeld role was small, it’s one of the most memorable one-episode characters as he portrayed Eric the Clown, a man George repeatedly got into arguments with. Additionally, it was hard to identify the actor being the MCU’s Jon Favreau since he was wearing a clown getup the entire episode, facepaint and all. Favreau’s Friends role was far more memorable, playing Monica’s millionaire boyfriend Pete Becker during season 3.

Christine Taylor

Following her notable role as Marcia Brady in the parodic The Brady Bunch Movie, Christine Taylor scored a 3-episode arc on Friends seasons 3 and 4 as Ross’s formerly-bald girlfriend Bonnie. Her role was pretty small but fairly important, playing Ross’s first girlfriend since he broke up with Rachel. The same year, Christine Taylor appeared in the memorable “The Van Buren Boys” episode of Seinfeld, portraying Jerry’s girlfriend Ellen whom his friends deemed a “loser.”

Jessica Hecht

Before landing her role as Gretchen Schwartz on Breaking Bad, Jessica Hecht was best known for playing the recurring character Susan Bunch on Friends. Hecht’s role was significant as she played one of Ross’s biggest adversaries, the new wife of Ross’s ex-wife Carol Stills who she left him for. The actress had previously appeared on two episodes of Seinfeld season 6 as Lindsay Enright, George’s girlfriend who breaks up with him after he walked back into a party without a shirt on.

Kyle Gass

Best known as a member of Jack Black’s comedy band Tenacious D, Kyle Gass has also made small comedic appearances on NBC’s Friends and Seinfeld. In his first television role, he cameoed in Seinfeld’s season 8 episode “The Abstinence” as “Smoker.” While still a small appearance, he later played a character with a name on Friends’ episode “The One with the Mugging” as Lowell, Phoebe’s friend from her mugging days.

Debra Jo Rupp

Debra Jo Rupp landed her most notable sitcom role as Kitty Forman on That ‘70s Show in 1998, but was better known beforehand for her 6-episode recurring role as Alice Knight on Friends. Her character was Phoebe’s brother Frank’s wife, who had previously been his high school home economics teacher. Before landing her Friends role, Rupp had a 2-episode arc on Seinfeld as Katie, appearing in seasons 6 and 9. She played Jerry Seinfeld’s manager who was notably inadequate in her job, continually costing Jerry opportunities for bookings.

Mike Hagerty

Mike Hagerty is a comedy actor best known for his blue-collar characters, having appeared on several notable sitcoms in small roles. His most iconic role is Friends’ recurring character Mr. Treeger, the superintendent of Monica, Chandler, Joey, and Rachel’s apartment building. He also appeared in Seinfeld’s 1994 episode “The Raincoats” as Rudy, a boutique shop owner who buys Kramer, Morty Seinfeld, and, through George, Frank Costanza’s raincoats.

Larry Hankin

Larry Hankin had a notable recurring role as Mr. Heckles in Friends, the eccentric downstairs neighbor of Rachel and Monica. He also played a remarkable Seinfeld role in season 4 as Tom Pepper, the actor who plays Cosmo Kramer in the pilot of Jerry and George’s NBC sitcom Jerry. Away from these roles Hankin is probably best known for his role as Charley Buttz in Escape from Alcatra.

Steve Hytner

For Seinfeld viewers, anyone who sees Steve Hytner sees the recurring character Kenny Bania, a stand-up comedian described as a hack by Jerry and those in his profession. His character is so memorable that Hytner even reprised the role in Curb Your Enthusiasm’s fictional Seinfeld reunion episode. Following his Seinfeld stint, Hytner had a small guest role in Friends’ season 6 finale as Mr. Thompson, the fundraiser auction coordinator at a charity event in which Joey accidentally buys a yacht.

Deedee Pfeiffer

The younger sister of actress Michelle Pfieffer, Deedee is best known for playing Cybill Shepherd’s fictional daughter on Cybill. She made a small appearance in Seinfeld season 5 as Victoria, a woman who goes on a date with George after he tells her he’s unemployed and lives with his parents. Pfieffer later had a guest role in Friends season 9 as Mary-Ellen Jenkins, the woman Phoebe sets Joey up on a date with for their double date before he finds Mike Hannigan (Paul Rudd) in Central Perk.

Jon Lovitz

The former Saturday Night Live cast member is known for his comedy stints, including a few cameos on Friends and Seinfeld. Interestingly, Jon Lovitz randomly appeared on Friends twice as the same minor character, Steve, but with an eight-season gap. His first appearance in Friends season 1 was as the restauranteur who showed up stoned to interview Monica in her apartment. He later returned in Friends season 9 on a blind date with Rachel, revealing he lost his restaurant because of his drug problem. In 1995, Lovitz guest-starred on Seinfeld as Gary Fogel, Jerry and George’s old friend who lied about having cancer and wore a toupee to attract women.

Denise Richards

Famed American model and actress Denise Richards may be best known for her successful film career, but started acting with small roles on popular sitcoms like Friends and Seinfeld. She appeared in one episode of Seinfeld season 4 as Molly Dalrymple, the daughter of the NBC executive who chided George for looking at her inappropriately. Several years later Richards guest-starred in Friends as Cassie Geller, Ross and Monica’s cousin who unintentionally causes issues when Chandler and (repulsively) Ross become too attracted to her.

Michael D. Roberts

Known for making plenty of guest appearances on television shows, Michale D. Roberts was featured in both Seinfeld and Friends during their heydays. His role in Seinfeld was Ipswich in “The Chicken Roaster,” who investigated Elaine’s suspiciously excessive charges on J. Peterman’s company account. He also had a small cameo in Friends as the head librarian who was confronted with the issue of students having sex in the library section housing the book Ross wrote.

Kellie Waymire

Amidst her long filmography of guest roles on TV shows, Kellie Waymire made a 1997 appearance on Seinfeld followed by a 2003 role on Friends. Her Seinfeld role was as Vivian in “The Blood,” Elaine’s friend who insults her when she asks Kramer to babysit her son instead. Waymire then appeared on Friends’ episode “The One Where Ross is Fine” as Colleen, Phoebe’s friend who meets with Chandler and Monica to talk about how they adopted their son. Chandler then makes the mistake of accidentally telling her son he was adopted, which he hadn’t known.

Link Source : https://screenrant.com/friends-seinfeld-actors-both-shows-appearances/

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