‘Friends’ Creator Marta Kauffman Admits She ‘Didn’t Do Enough’ For Diversity On Her Show

Friends creator Marta Kauffman said she regrets not doing more for diversity on some of her earlier television shows. The veteran showrunner, who created the long-running NBC hit alongside her pal David Crane, got emotional during the ATX TV…from the Couch panel as she spoke about some of her decisions in the early days of her career.

“I wish I knew then what I know today,” Kauffman, 63, said as she began to tear up, per Page Six. “I just wish I knew then what I know now. I would’ve made very different decisions.”

Kauffman, who also co-created the white female-led hits Veronica’s Closet, Jesse, and Grace and Frankie, added that it was only very recently that she realized that she needed to make a change in how she oversees her shows.

“I mean we’ve always encouraged people of diversity in our company, but I didn’t do enough and now all I can think about is what can I do?” the Emmy winner said.

Kauffman added that she questioned how she could run her show in a new way, and she added that it was something that she not only wishes she knew when she started show running, but that she wishes she knew all the way up through last year.

A Black Lady Sketch Show creator Robin Thede later told Kauffman that she was unwittingly part of “systemic racism” that has been in place in the entertainment industry and elsewhere for decades and she noted that now that people know better they will do better.

Television executive Karey Burke previously told The Hollywood Reporter that when Kauffman and Crane first pitched Friends, the co-creators “pushed back” when the execs tried to push for a more diverse cast. The duo reportedly claimed that they had very specific ideas that would only work with six white straight people. Producers ultimately cast David Schwimmer, Jennifer Aniston, Matthew Perry, Courteney Cox, Matt Leblanc, and Lisa Kudrow for the ensemble sitcom.

Friends has long been criticized for its lack of diversity. The sitcom aired from 1994 to 2004 and famously followed the all-white group of six friends living in New York City. In Season 9, Ross (David Schwimmer) dated Charlie, a black paleontology professor (Aisha Tyler).

In an interview with The Guardian, earlier this tear, Schwimmer admitted he was “well aware” of the lack of diversity on Friends and revealed that he “campaigned for years to have Ross date women of color.”

“One of the first girlfriends I had on the show was an Asian-American woman, and later I dated African-American women,” the Friends star said. “That was a very conscious push on my part.”