Hollywood actor Jerry Seinfeld recently shared his thoughts on the parallels between the American sitcom ‘Friends’ and his own iconic show ‘Seinfeld’. Speaking at the Netflix Is a Joke Presents Jerry Seinfeld event in Los Angeles, Seinfeld humorously pointed out the resemblance between the two series. He quipped that NBC might have drawn inspiration from his show, which aired a few years before ‘Friends’, and decided to replicate its success with attractive characters.
Seinfeld’s sitcom, which aired from 1989 to 1998, also revolved around a group of friends in New York City, much like ‘Friends’. The latter, spanning from 1994 to 2004 and broadcast on NBC, featured Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer, Matthew Perry, Courteney Cox, and Matt LeBlanc in leading roles. In contrast, Seinfeld starred alongside Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jason Alexander, Jerry Stiller, Wayne Knight, and others, with Larry David co-creating and writing the show before joining the cast in later seasons.
This is not the first time Seinfeld has playfully teased ‘Friends’. In a satirical Pop-Tarts video from 2024, a character jokingly asked Seinfeld how it feels when others borrow ideas, hinting at the similarities between the two sitcoms. Seinfeld’s recent comments on his show came after a discussion with Larry David about the challenges they faced at the beginning of ‘Seinfeld’, shared during a live taping of The Rushmore Podcast at the Netflix Is a Joke festival.
