Friends Actor Says They’re Glad They Weren’t a Series Star (& the Reason Makes Sense)

Friends turned its six main stars into household names, but even for recurring characters, it was life-changing. For example, Jessica Hecht played Susan Bunch throughout the series, and while she only appeared in 13 episodes, fans likely remember her as the partner of Carol (Jane Sibbett), Ross’ (David Schwimmer) ex-wife. In a new interview with PEOPLE, Hecht said she is “grateful” for the role, but also grateful that she wasn’t in the main cast. She feels that most people couldn’t handle the “responsibility” of keeping the beloved show afloat for all those years. This is especially true now that Hecht has seen Friends‘ incredible legacy in the age of streaming.

“That show affecting so many people’s lives and the actors on that show affecting so many people’s lives… I watch it with awe, and I understand the need for that,” Hecht said. “I’m also grateful that I wasn’t a lead character in many ways, because the responsibility of that is more than most people could manage.”

Hecht praised the six stars of the main cast — Schwimmer, Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, and Matthew Perry — for handling their stardom “gracefully.” She also shouted out director James Burrows, feeling that he helped the cast hold onto the real heart of the show without being distracted by the fame. “The fact that they were each unique within that beautiful cluster was truly an accomplishment,” she said.

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Carol and Susan feel like a huge part of Friends‘ story, so it’s strange to realize in hindsight that they made so few appearances. The two are introduced in the pilot episode, where Ross is still grieving his recent divorce. The heartbreak over his ex-wife leaving him for a different person is devastating on its own, while the show’s punchlines about her sexuality serve as a time capsule for the perception of the LGBTQ+ community over the last three decades. However, the dynamic is not dropped like a throwaway joke — Ross must learn to co-parent with both Carol and Susan in the years that follow, and the show was praised for this storyline as often as it as criticized.

Hecht went on to play other brief but important roles on TV, like Gretchen Schwartz on Breaking Bad and Carol Mannheim on The Boys. This week, she made headlines when she was nominated for a Tony Award for her performance in Eureka Days on Broadway last year. It’s her third Tony nomination, and she told PEOPLE she was extremely grateful for the honor. Those that want to revisit her time on Friends, the series is currently streaming on HBO Max.