Tom Selleck Says ‘Friends’ Was ‘A Great Place To Work,’ Discusses Joining A Possible Revival

Tom Selleck has been a TV actor for over three decades, but for some, he may best be known for his role as Richard on Friends. Although Selleck was never a regular cast member on the series, he was among the show’s most memorable recurring guest stars. In a recent interview with People Magazine, Selleck discussed his time on the show and the possibility of joining the cast in some sort of reunion.

The show’s six main actors were slated to appear in an unscripted reunion special as part of the launch of HBO Now, but those plans were scrapped as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. In his interview, Selleck said that he hadn’t been asked to be part of that special.

“But if the opportunity came up, I’d do it again!” Selleck shared.

In the interview, Selleck said that the Friends set was “a great place to work” and also praised the show’s regular ensemble.

“The actors were grateful for the opportunity and they were all as good as you can get,” Selleck stated.

Although he had scenes with every member of the cast, the majority of his time on the show was spent with Courteney Cox’s Monica. Richard was one of her early love interests in the series’ run.

In the interview, Selleck said that he was first brought in to screen test against Cox before taking on the role. In spite of his long history on TV, Selleck said that he did experience some nervousness about joining the show after it had already become an enormous phenomenon.

“I hadn’t done a three camera live show since ‘Taxi.’ It scared me a little. But that’s the price you pay for opportunity!” Selleck said.

Selleck also told the magazine that his original arc on the show wasn’t nearly as long as it ended up being. Originally, he said he only signed up for three episodes of the show. At the table read for what was supposed to be his final appearance, things changed.

“They said, ‘Hey can you do a few more?’ So then I did more. And I quickly realized, ‘Wow, this is a big deal.'”

Selleck briefly returned to the show in 2000, and Richard’s return threatened to drive a wedge in the relationship between Chandler and Monica.

Elsewhere in his interview with People, Selleck also discussed the camaraderie that the show’s cast had and said that the series worked because they got along so well.