A Jurassic Park Star Was The First Choice To Play Rachel On Friends
In another timeline, the most prominent patrons of Central Perk could've looked very different.
Jennifer Aniston won the role of "Friends" character Rachel Green, the runaway bride and the high school crush of Ross Geller (David Schwimmer), and that performance turned her into a television staple (and inspired a wave of copycat haircuts across the country). But while Aniston might've felt like a perfect fit for the character, she wasn't the first choice. According to Vulture, Téa Leoni, the eventual star of "Jurassic Park III" (one of the best "Jurassic Park" movies), was originally being eyed for the part. Instead, Leoni landed a gig in a different sitcom that, unfortunately, didn't have the same level of longevity.
After turning down the "Friends" role, Leoni starred in "The Naked Truth" as journalist Nora Wilde opposite Holland Taylor ("The Practice") and Amy Ryan ("The Office," "The Wire"). The series debuted on ABC in 1995 before moving to NBC in 1997. After three seasons, the show was axed. Meanwhile, "Friends" continued to thrive, lasting for ten seasons. But while Leoni might've lost out on the role of Rachel, she wasn't the only person who came close to joining the rest of the now-legendary group of twenty-somethings. Aniston competed against some former "Saved by the Bell" alumni, while other rising stars found a slot elsewhere on the long-running "Friends" timeline.
Two Saved by the Bell stars came close to playing Rachel Green
In addition to Téa Leoni, a pair of Bayside's former students found themselves in competition for the role. "Saved by the Bell" stars Tiffani Thiessen and Elizabeth Berkley, who played Kelly Kapowski and Jessie Spano, respectively, both auditioned to play Rachel (via Vulture and EW). Despite not landing the role, the two eventually found laughs elsewhere: Thiessen appeared in the ABC sitcom "Two Guys and a Girl" (which starred a young Ryan Reynolds), and Berkley made a brief appearance in "New Girl" opposite Zooey Deschanel.
Some potential "Friends" who didn't get the parts they were initially considered for ended up filling other spots. Hank Azaria, who played Phoebe's (Lisa Kudrow) on-and-off boyfriend David, auditioned for Joey before it went to Matt LeBlanc. "Iron Man" director and actor Jon Favreau also turned down Chandler Bing, which went to Matthew Perry. It wasn't a huge loss for him, though, as he appeared in six episodes as one of Monica's (Courtney Cox) earlier love interests, Pete. With alternative picks like that, we could've ended up with a very different group of friends. Let's just be glad for the batch we got.