Rumours about Chris Rock nearly getting cast in Friends and Seinfeld have floated around for ages – and now he’s confirmed them.
It goes without saying that the ensemble casts of Seinfeld and Friends are among the finest in TV history and the magic wouldn’t have happened had someone else been cast.
But as it turns out, there was a brief moment in time where Chris Rock was someone who was being considered for major roles in both Seinfeld and Friends.
Appearing on A Late Show With Stephen Colbert to chat about the “hot remix” of his most recent Netflix stand-up special, the comedian confirmed that the rumours of him potentially being cast in Seinfeld and Friends were indeed true.
Apparently Rock was in the running to portray the one and only George Costanza on Seinfeld, a role that was ultimately made famous by Jason Alexander.
“There was a lot of NBC talk. There was talk about Seinfeld“, Rock told Colbert.
As for the Friends rumour, there was also talk that he was going to be one of the main guys in that ensemble cast. Rock didn’t say whether he was up for the Ross, Chandler, or Joey role but he did joke that he would’ve ended up being the “Black friend” of the group had he been cast.
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“There was talk about me being one of the Friends at a point. Yes, I would have been the Black friend. That’s actually who I am to America anyway,” says Rock.
While the thought of losing out on major roles on two iconic sitcoms is enough to fill most with resentment, Rock says he isn’t bitter at all.
“Let’s just say the good people at Seinfeld, they made the right choice,” Rock added. “[Jason Alexander’s’ good. He’s amazing.”
Check out Chris Rock talking about nearly getting cast in Friends and Seinfeld on A Late Show With Stephen Colbert:
