Not solely does “Mates” co-creator Marta Kauffman regret the cast’s lack of diversity, she additionally feels dangerous concerning the present’s portrayal of a transgender character.
In a clip from Kauffman’s upcoming interview on the Conversation on the BBC World Service, she recalled the selection to refer to the transgender mother of Chandler Bing (Matthew Perry) as his “dad.”
“Pronouns weren’t but one thing that I understood,” Kauffman admitted. “So we didn’t check with that character as ‘she.’ That was a mistake.’”
Performed by Kathleen Turner, Chandler’s trans dad or mum, Amanda Bing, appeared in a number of of “Mates” episodes, together with “The One With Monica And Chandler’s Wedding, Part 1.”
In 2019, Turner mentioned on “Watch What Occurs Stay With Andy Cohen” that she would not accept the role nowadays “as a result of there can be actual individuals in a position to do [the role].”
Kauffman, who additionally created Netflix’s “Grace and Frankie,” instructed the BBC how she’s modified her units to be extra inclusive.
“I like very a lot to create an atmosphere the place we have now a cheerful set and a cheerful crew. It’s essential to me that the place we’re is a secure place, a tolerant place, the place there’s no yelling. I fired a man on the spot for making a joke a couple of trans cameraperson. That simply can’t occur,” she mentioned.
“Mates” has lengthy been criticized for its lack of diversity. The favored present, which ran from 1994 to 2004, includes a group of six white, heterosexual greatest mates dwelling in Greenwich Village, a famously homosexual neighborhood in New York — a traditionally various metropolis.
Just lately, Kauffman lastly admitted to the present’s faults and pledged $4 million to her alma mater, Brandeis College, to fund an endowed chair within the college’s African and African American research division, one of many oldest within the nation.
Kauffman’s full interview with the BBC airs July 11.
