Lisa Kudrow Full Interview - CONAN on TBS

My guest, of course, is an Emmy Award-winning actress who played Phoebe on Friends. She also created and starred in the critically acclaimed series The Comeback and Web Therapy. Her latest series House Broken premieres May 31 on Fox. Welcome Lisa Kudrow. Thanks for being. Here in person, how fun, isn't it nice? sure we're fine we're very safe we've both been vaccinated 15 times yes, I don't think it's too much no, I think 15 is about right, you know? I have to say, I've known you for a long time and when all this, you know, the pandemic hit and we all went into quarantine and I was talking to you on Zoom, part of me would think you knew Lisa.

The way I do it, I think she's suitable for quarantine. I think she always wanted to be in quarantine. A reason for yes, yes, you wanted a reason, but that is your natural state. Can I stay at home? I love being at home. It is the best. because I remember uh, you know, back in the day, you know, when we were young, you know, super young, mid-twenties and I met you. I always wanted to go to the clubs and go out and rave and push it and take it to the limit and You always say no, no one should stay home, you know what I mean, remember I just made all that up?

I know I never went out, it's never funny and I met you in an improv class and that was too hard for I said yes and that's what you're saying, it's the information I put in there, well, Andy, you found out later I he was the guy who wanted to rave and dance and just take it to the max. Oh, absolutely, yeah, yeah, boy, that guy. how do you do it yeah that's called yeah and Andy agreed with the crazy information I posted, didn't we go to a club once? I don't know, I remember seeing that I was with you, it's a dark place, there are too many people around for me. right, because no, it's always been my stage, I danced, I was a dancer in a club and you came to check it out, check me out, I remember it very clearly, okay, I think I remember it, yeah, and you screamed, I remember you screamed, no No I have the body for this very loudly.

Oh, now I do remember that he was the only go-go dancer whose cage was ordered by the court. I thought: Can someone let me out? No, no, you have to stay in the cage. Sorry, in the cage. And now that? yes you have implanted these memories and in 10 years I will write a book

conan

was a go-go dancer that's what I want yes I still think that if I keep saying these ridiculous things someone will pick them up somewhere and then it's going to end up in a book like for a while

conan

was a go-go dancer true, but that's what you want falsehoods about yourself, yes, they are much better than the truth, you like the truth, yes, you studied history, okay, you like it. the truth, well, except about me, I want lies that make me look cool, so many people are excited about this meeting of friends, you just filmed it, yeah, what can you tell us?

Everyone wants to know and there has been a veil of secrecy over the whole thing. but I thought I knew Lisa, I've known her for a long time, if I bring her here she'll tell me everything, I'll tell you everything I can say, okay, did you really get a memo? of what you can say this is this is what I can say okay um key phrase that we can say okay according to Warner Media hbo max accompanied by special guests we're going to be the entire cast um we're all filming it's good I like it I like it so far and the fact that you made a small mistake adds emotion, so it's very happy, it's real and there's pressure, yes, it's okay, it's okay, accompanied by special guests, the entire cast returns to the original sound stage 24 in the studio lot of Warner Brothers for an unscripted reunion special in celebration of the show, so it's not that exciting, that's what you can say, you know how to tempt people, yeah, right, man, so I guess whoever wrote that knows how Act. it's actually a bit dangerous, yes the way it's worded could cause a stampede too on stage 24, yes as everyone knows no you didn't go back to stage 24.

For friends come on you know we're finishing things and Obviously we're not at Warner Brothers right now, but we were there because you know, we were almost there for 10 years a decade at Warner Brothers and I would constantly see trams with tourists go by Warner Brothers and people always wanted to see the fountain of the friends. the iconic friends fountain, yeah, and you'd hear them passing by like, where's the friends fountain? and sometimes they would come and want to walk past me and the tour guide would say and that's conan o'brien and it was like where is he?

The friend said, I was like I was a person, can you guys tell me this? Did they recreate the iconic opening you know, where you're all frolicking in the fountain? No, but I said it with enthusiasm, right, no, but, uh-. Hey, we're at the source and there's footage that I've never seen before that I was really excited about, of course, so if you like that the founder is interested, if we did that, then yeah, that would be kind of exciting and you. We'll see and what I like is that it seems like you're going to see a lot of images that people haven't seen before and you're going to take us back to that moment or look at images that we haven't seen before. and that's like clips from the show that some of us still never saw well, that's the other thing is you never watched a lot of shows.

I shouldn't say that you never saw all the friends because in the beginning yes, we all watched all the episodes together, but you know, in the last few years I had a son and honestly, it wasn't like he wasn't interested and who cares, It was more, I have to be honest, I am so self-taught. aware of okay, everyone shh, I'm on TV, now you know I can't do it, I have no problem doing it right, yeah, get together, I'm on TV, kids, hush and let's start, dad, I'm bleeding, calm down, bleed and we will drink. her to the hospital later you can do your homework later you can take sats another day are you looking at me now your son i don't want to embarrass your son but he has become one of the most handsome and cool guys i have ever seen in my life is funny uh just uh how handsome and nice and soft he is uh, does Julian know the show?

Does he watch the show or was it as strange for him as if he couldn't watch a show my mom was on? Yeah, we haven't talked about it, I just know that he hasn't seen every episode, I mean, no, no, I know, for a while at school people were watching it and he felt like he had to do it so he could participate in what everyone else does. He was watching it and he really thought everyone else was really funny on the show and then that's a classic kid, just like everyone else, he's funny, that's classic and then that's true.

I think for all of us I'm not sure I can do it. No, I don't know, but I know that he, you know what he would say, but and you're funny too, he's like, thanks, hey, don't be so sad when, when he was growing up, can I say something true? and well, he was able to come to the meeting, okay, another tent that wasn't in the audience and all that really said covet safe and then he came up to me and just said, I don't know, this is awkward or inappropriate. Can I say that I am very proud of you?

Oh, that's very nice, yes, that was one of the very emotional things that happened to me, that's not part of it, but you know, oh, that was very nice of him, yes, that's beautiful. moment, yeah, not because he watched the show and was like, God, she's hot, yeah, but I think you know that's okay too, I mean, he grew up on that set in the early years, you'd bring him on set and he'd get confused. a bit. Like him, I know he was really obsessed with Jen Aniston, yeah, no, no, he would fly into her lap like she was a love bug and you know, and that made sense and I was always happy for anyone Julian had love for. and I was sorry for um, but then at home like she was on TV and he said mommy, so that has to leave a little bit of a scar, maybe I guess I remember it, yeah, for a non-scarring reason. , but it's that good, you know?

I'm a bit analytical so I'm wondering if this is an illusion or if they have some kind of oversoul connection that I don't have with him. Well, I'm happy for both of them. Yeah, well, I want to make sure I mention it. uh, broken house on this, oh, that would be good, yeah, yeah, well, you know, we mentioned everything here. uh, broken house, um, your character is an animated show and you're a poodle in this, does this feel like a good fit for you, this character, this poodle? yeah, I'm shaking my head no, yeah, yeah, she does, it feels like a good fit because she's the person who's in charge and controls you a little bit like that, yeah, yeah, and um, and she's pretty, but No, to me, the funny thing about her is that, you know, she is her, she's not funny, but she knows she needs to be, so she throws it out and it's fine, it doesn't land and I love that when someone tries to be something, they just don't.

It is not even a little bit. but it's also like you're so good at it and one of the things that I loved that you've done in your career after making friends is that you've found all these roles and ways to be someone completely different than phoebe and just looking at therapy web, you seem to have a lot of fun when you play someone who is trying to control things or when you come back, you try to control things, you're not sure why everyone is always laughing and your sense of humor is so cool, but you seem to love playing to people who don't have that, yeah, which is fun for you.

I think that's the funniest thing for me because I think everyone is potentially funny. You know, um and and for me, what's fun is. when people just have no idea how they're behaving when I see it in myself I'm mortified I say it like it took me away for a couple of days because you know how I missed it, how I missed it? true, but well, you're too hard on yourself, you're too self-critical, yeah, this is turning into a therapy session, you're too hard on yourself, that's what I'm saying, but I love it. You seem to delight in playing these people and it seems like you're doing it again playing this character who wants to control things but doesn't exactly understand what's funny in the room.

No, she does not? she knows she needs to lighten things up sometimes, that's just one facet of this extremely complicated animated character, but that was also written for you on your phone, no, I made it up myself, aha, aha, it was articulate. Well, I want to mention that House Broken premieres on May 31, at nine, sorry at nine on Fox and I wanted to do something special, which as you know, we met in an improv class and this is one of those crazy moments to come

full

circle because we're wrapping things up here at TBS, yeah, and I'm feeling nostalgic for all kinds of things I've been involved in over the years, like one of the really precious memories that I have no memories of .

Mine is deciding when I first came here to La 85 that I wanted to do improv and start trying to act, so I looked around and found out there was a class here at this theater, yeah, I went there and it was one of those. the classes were taught by cynthia spaghetti you put money in the jar when you walked in I walked into this class and one of the first people I saw was you in the class that's how we met, yeah, and I immediately identified you as someone really special and someone really funny and talented who was going to do great things and we, the room where we met is right across the little courtyard and I thought it might be fun if you had gone back to that room, no, yeah, I thought so.

It could be fun here at the end of the segment if we just walked around and saw where we met and this is an inspiring message for everyone who is in a little improv class. I swear to God, that's how it's done. Go there and meet amazing people, whether it's an acting class, an improv class or doing stand-up comedy in a club, that's where you meet people and you're young and you have dreams and it can actually work out really well, so I want to go. check it yeah let's go right now it's here hide it yeah it's okay it's a room

full

of asbestos oh but don't worry I don't think that's exciting thank you very much oh my god it's okay making me look Rude, always flanny there.

You see, I went first to try the stairs.