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Matt LeBlanc Takes On Friends' Millennial Critics: 'I Disagree With All Of That'

He branded the criticisms 'pop shots'.
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Entertainment Editor

Matt LeBlanc has addressed the criticism ‘Friends’ has faced after being rediscovered by millennials.

Last month, the hit 1990s show was made available to stream on Netflix, which was met with a wave of excitement from long-time fans of the show.

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The cast of friends in the 1990s
NBC via Getty Images

However, when many began re-watching it, they noted that some aspects of the show were rather problematic in 2018, most specifically the absence of people of colour and humour which bordered on homophobic and fat-shaming.

Matt - who played Joey in all 10 seasons of ‘Friends’, and its spin-off based on his character - has now dismissed the controversy, admitting he disagrees with the show’s modern critics.

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Matt LeBlanc
Alberto E. Rodriguez via Getty Images

He told the BBC: “I’ve heard those rumours too about people taking pot shots at Friends, but I don’t want to get into that. I disagree with all that.”

Comparing the show to his latest venture on the presenting team of ‘Top Gear’, he continued: “On Top Gear, we tend to steer clear of any sort of political content, nothing too topical.

“On ‘Friends’, we steered clear of that kind of thing too. Friends was about themes that stand the test of time – trust, love, relationships, betrayal, family and things like that.”

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Matt LeBlanc in a photo call for the first season of 'Friends'
NBC via Getty Images

Other aspects of ‘Friends’ that millenial views took issue with when viewing it for the first time on Netflix include the show’s lack of realism, the polarising fashion choices and, well, the entire character of Ross Geller.

Matt will return for his third series of ‘Top Gear’ on Sunday, while ‘Friends’ is available to stream in full on UK Netflix.

11 Minor Friends Characters We Wish We'd Seen More Of
Jack and Judy Geller (Elliott Gould and Christina Pickles)(01 of11)
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Whether they're being wildly sexually inappropriate, insensitive to their daughter or putting everybody in their place, the arrival of Monica and Ross's parents always guarantees an eventful episode.

While Jack and Judy are the recurring characters with the most guest appearances (20, if you're interested), we'd still like to have seen them a little more often. (credit:Warner Bros via friends.wikia.com)
Susan Bunch (Jessica Hecht)(02 of11)
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Sadly, Susan was never seen past the sixth series of Friends, which is a real shame as we loved her long-standing frosty relationship with Ross.

We particularly enjoyed her blasé putdowns, which she managed to deliver with an iciness we aspire to. (credit:Warner Bros)
Bonnie (Christine Taylor)(03 of11)
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A woman who will shave her head in the middle of a beach holiday just because someone planted the mere suggestion in her mind. Amazing.

We know Rachel wouldn't have been thrilled by the prospect, but we definitely wouldn't have minded Bonnie sticking around for more than two episodes. (credit:Warner Bros)
Eddie Menuek (Adam Goldberg)(04 of11)
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As Chandler's brief time living with Eddie grew to a close, he became an even more odd creation, but it would have been great if the writers had cranked things up another notch with his strangeness, or at the very least showed us what happened when he was shown the door.

Where did he go? Who does he live with now? How is his cherished pet, the goldfish cracker? These are the questions we need answers to. (credit:Warner Bros)
Amy Greene (Christina Applegate)(05 of11)
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It's always great when one of the characters' family members arrive, because they remind you of how they used to be – and that's never more true than when Rachel's sister Amy arrives on the scene.

Amy is even more spoilt, and cares less about other people's feelings, than Season One Rachel, though with slightly less iconic hair. (No offence to Christina Applegate, of course). (credit:Warner Bros via friends.wikia.com)
Frank Buffay Jr and Alice Knight Buffay (Giovanni Ribisi and Debra Jo Rupp)(06 of11)
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Joey was the character who went on to end up with his own spin-off, but we think it definitely should have been Frank and Alice.

Who honestly wouldn't want to watch a show about a man who marries his home-economics teacher, then raises triplets – that his sister gives birth to – with her? It would have been an Emmys shoo-in. (credit:Warner Bros via friends.wikia.com)
Amanda Buffamonteezi (Jennifer Coolidge)(07 of11)
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Phoebe and Monica made the unwise decision to "cut out" Amanda, but frankly we'd have happily seen her stay until the finale, for the dancing alone. (credit:Warner Bros)
Mr Heckles (Larry Hankin)(08 of11)
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The great thing about Mr Heckles, especially watching earlier series back, is that it reminds you just how young the characters were – and what a nightmare that group of twenty-somethings would have been if you lived near them... (credit:Warner Bros)
Erica (Anna Faris)(09 of11)
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...conversely, by the time Erica arrives in the tenth season, her youthful naivety proves just how far the six principal characters have come.

We can't help but feel the fabulous and funny Anna Faris was criminally underused, and it would have been nice to see her stay around exploring New York for a while longer, rather than her few fleeting appearances. (credit:Warner Bros via friends.wikia.com)
Gunther (James Michael Tyler)(10 of11)
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True, Gunther did feature in quite a lot of episodes, but how much do we know about the man behind the fluorescent hair?What does he do at night? Where does he live? What are his hopes? His dreams? His fears?Actually, it's probably best not to know... (credit:Warner Bros)
Marcel (Katie the Monkey)(11 of11)
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Just because. (credit:Warner Bros via friends.wikia.com)
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