Lisa Kudrow

In Friends (1994), Lisa Kudrow's Phoebe Buffay never quite settles into the same rhythm as the other five. Matthew Perry puts unexpected pressure on a word; David Schwimmer gives discomfort a physical weight; Kudrow makes the pace of an exchange less predictable. We warmed to Phoebe because that difference never stopped us believing she belonged with these people. The writing can strain to distinguish the six friends, but Kudrow gives it something useful: a character who does not seem to be waiting for permission to be peculiar.

There are limits to what that timing can repair. The social circle in Friends can feel airless, and the writing sometimes insists on differences the actors have already made clear. Kudrow's performance gives us a reason to return despite those faults. She also took an early film lead opposite Mira Sorvino, playing Michele Weinberger in Romy and Michele's High School Reunion (1997).

The sharper turn came after Friends, when she co-created, wrote and starred in The Comeback (2005). Developed with writer and director Michael Patrick King, it gives her Valerie Cherish, a self-absorbed former sitcom actress being followed in mock-reality style. Here the character's desperation makes embarrassment harder to shrug off, and the discomfort can crowd out the broader laughs. Co-creating and starring as Fiona Wallice in the improvised Web Therapy (2008) kept her involved in creating her own work.

Olivia Wilde's Booksmart (2019) finds her in a supporting part as Charmaine, while Beanie Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever carry the central friendship. We recommend that film for its humour and warmth, while finding its treatment of the friends' mistakes too tidy. It is a useful companion to Friends: another comedy whose appeal depends on believing that people enjoy each other's company, even when they have misjudged themselves. For Kudrow herself, start with Phoebe; try Valerie when there is more appetite for discomfort.