Photo-Illustration: Vulture. Photos: Variety/YouTube
*Clap clap clap clap.* Abbott Elementary’s Quinta Brunson didn’t hesitate to demonstrate kindness and empathy when Jennifer Aniston started crying during their conversation for Variety’s “Actors on Actors” series. During the chat, a staffer off-camera says, “Will you ask Jen, Quinta, what it’s like to watch Friends now?” “Oh god, don’t make me cry,” Aniston replies, and starts tearing up. Presumably, she’s been reminded of her late co-star Matthew Perry, who starred as Chandler Bing and died last year. A concerned Brunson checks in to see if Aniston needs to take a break, and emphasizes several times that “we don’t have to talk about [it].” “No, no, sorry, I just started thinking about…” Aniston says, trailing off. Brunson nods and says, “I know.”
After Aniston — who says she was shedding “happy tears” — is handed a tissue and composes herself, Brunson tactfully continues their talk by bringing up the upcoming 30th anniversary of Friends. This leads to a joking back-and-forth about Aniston also being 30 years old (“When you were a baby on that show, you were so advanced,” Brunson quips). Aniston goes on to indirectly acknowledge Perry when she says “all five of us — all six of us” could never have imagined the sitcom’s longevity, adding that the Friends cast is a “family forever.” By the end of the conversation, Aniston is in high enough spirits to pitch herself as a guest star on Abbott Elementary. Aniston on Abbott? We’re not just saying this because she played one of TV’s most famous Rachels, but … show me to me please, send it to me Rachel.
