“Friends” co-creator Marta Kauffman has admitted it was wrong to misgender the transgender parent of one of the show’s main characters.
The massively successful sitcom about six white friends living in Manhattan in the late ‘90s and early 2000s captured the attention of viewers from all over the world.
The show, which ended its 10-season run in 2004, won six Emmys but it also had its share of problematic portrayals of minorities.
In an upcoming interview with BBC World Service, Kauffman addressed an issue the show had when portraying a transgender character.
In the show, Chandler Bing (Matthew Perry) had a trans mother, Helena (Kathleen Turner).
While a trans character in a hit ‘90s sitcom was somewhat groundbreaking, her transition was only used for laughs, and Helena’s appearance and gender identity were often the reason for many of the jokes.
She was also referred to as Chandler’s “father” — which is something Kauffman now regrets.
“Pronouns were not yet something that I understood,” Kauffman told the BBC, in a show set to air July 11. “So we didn’t refer to that character as ‘she.’ That was a mistake,’” she added.
Turner, who appeared in three episodes of the show’s seventh season, said in 2019 that she would not have accepted the role if it was offered to her again today “because there would be real people able to do [the role].”
Last week, Kauffman spoke to the Los Angeles Times about the show’s problematic lack of racial diversity, saying that she is donating $4 million to create the Marta F. Kauffman ‘78 Professorship in African and African American Studies at Brandeis University.
“I’ve learned a lot in the last 20 years,” Kauffman said. “Admitting and accepting guilt is not easy. It’s painful looking at yourself in the mirror. I’m embarrassed that I didn’t know better 25 years ago.”
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