Lisa Kudrow Is Finally Rewatching Friends For This Absolutely Heartbreaking Reason

The one where Lisa Kudrow finally rewatches Friends…

For the longest time, the actress refused to view one second of the reruns of the beloved sitcom out of fear of hating her work on the show. But now, she started to watch old episodes again for a sweet but heartbreaking reason — to keep the memory of her late friend and co-star Matthew Perry alive. Lisa told The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday:

“Honestly, I wasn’t able to watch it because it’s too embarrassing to watch yourself. But if I make it about Matthew, then that’s OK. And it’s just celebrating how hilarious he was — and that is what I want to remember [about him].”

He truly was so funny as Chandler Bing. While it’s “embarrassing” for Lisa to watch her own performance on the show, even she can admit that “everyone is hilarious,” including her — but especially Matthew. In fact, she often finds herself “laughing out loud” over the episodes! The Emmy winner said:

“I’m blown away by Courteney Cox. I’m blown away by Jen. Matthew, obviously, is just uniquely hilarious. No one ever knew that cadence or comedic rhythm before him. Matt LeBlanc is hilarious. And David Schwimmer, too. Sometimes I even laugh at what I’ve done. So, yeah, I mean, that’s my own little way of celebrating [the anniversaries], just watching it. But it’s embarrassing. At home, if anyone walks in the room and I’m watching Friends, that’s a horrible look, I think, don’t you?”

Of course, it’s not all laughs. It must be very hard to see episodes of her close pal after his death. But for Lisa, she’s keeping the happiness she felt during filming with the entire cast at the forefront of her mind. Looking back on their ten-season run, the Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion star shared that she has nothing but fond memories:

“You’re just laughing all day long, basically, in between the scenes, because these are funny people. And especially someone like Matthew, whose goal was: How many laughs can I get in real life every day? So we were always laughing so hard, tears were flying out of our faces.”

When asked how she wants everyone to remember Matthew, Lisa simply replied: