Lisa Kudrow Says Matthew Perry’s Death Led Her to Revisit ‘Friends,’ Discusses ‘Romy & Michele’ Sequel and Potential Emmy Run

Lisa Kudrow revisited the world of Friends after Matthew Perry’s death, telling The Hollywood Reporter that seeing the show again was part of how she processed the moment and what the series has meant to audiences over time. Kudrow, who first became a breakout award winner as the earliest Emmy-winning Friends star, said she has continued to watch the show’s moments and legacy in the wake of Perry’s passing, even as her own career has moved into new stages.

The interview also turned to Kudrow’s work beyond Friends, including her involvement with the long-anticipated Romy & Michele sequel. Kudrow discussed returning to a property that helped define her early cultural footprint, describing the sequel as part of her broader slate while emphasizing the ongoing connection between her public profile and the characters that built her audience.

Kudrow’s conversation, however, centered most heavily on her HBO comedy series The Comeback. The Hollywood Reporter reports that Kudrow has been nominated for acting and writing on the third and final season of the series, framing those bids as a potential capstone to the show’s run. In the interview, Kudrow suggested that the recognition could be among the most meaningful highlights of her career.

The Comeback had already established Kudrow as both a performer and a creative voice, and the nominations reinforce that dual role. According to the report, Kudrow’s involvement in the final season is tied to two different categories, acting and writing, a sign that her work is being evaluated both for on-screen performance and for how she helped shape the series’ creative direction as it ended.

For television award seasons, the last stretch of a series can also reshape public attention and viewing patterns, particularly when nominations involve both performance and writers’ rooms. Kudrow’s case matters to HBO’s awards profile, since the network’s comedy pipeline is often watched closely for how it sustains momentum into the final chapters of a run.

The Hollywood Reporter’s piece places Kudrow’s reflection on Perry’s death alongside her current professional focus, linking personal grief to public art in a way that viewers often experience when a beloved performer is no longer alive. Her comments arrive at a time when The Comeback’s final season is drawing renewed attention from voters, while Romy & Michele and other projects keep her recognizable to audiences across multiple eras.

As Kudrow approaches what the report characterizes as another potential Emmy outcome, her next steps will likely continue to depend on award timelines and promotional schedules tied to the nominations. Meanwhile, the Romy & Michele sequel remains a separate, longer-horizon project, positioned in the interview as another return to a familiar film-world identity even as The Comeback closes the chapter on the series itself.