A Marvel Director Turned Down The Offer To Play Chandler Bing On Friends
David Crane’s and Marta Kauffman’s sitcom *Friends* was conceived and pitched as a very low-concept show. There were no strange dramatic conceits or unusual premises that required lengthy explanations. It was simply a show about six friends—two of them siblings—who lived in neighboring apartments in New York City. The characters were all in their 20s and spent the series navigating various jobs and relationships, ultimately forming an ersatz family in one another.
The success of the show was going to hinge on the writing (of course) and the charisma of the six leads. Luckily, the casting director on *Friends* was spot-on, finding six perfectly matched, attractive white twentysomethings to inhabit the show’s mythically inexpensive New York apartments.
Each of the six *Friends* became gigantic stars, and it wasn’t long before they were fetching enormous salaries. Jennifer Aniston played the lovelorn Rachel, Courteney Cox was her best friend Monica, Lisa Kudrow portrayed the flighty hippie Phoebe, David Schwimmer took on Monica’s neurotic brother Ross (beloved by Rachel), Matt LeBlanc played the cocky actor Joey, and the late Matthew Perry was the amusingly smug “transponster” Chandler.
Because chemistry and comedic talent were key to the show’s success, the audition process was extensive. Out of 1,000 auditions, 75 actors became finalists. After many callbacks and heartbreaking phone calls, the 75 was eventually winnowed down to 18, with three potential actors for each central role.
Fans of *Friends* likely know the litany of actors who were turned away, including Jon Cryer, Hank Azaria, Kathy Griffin, the too-young Tiffani Amber Thiessen, Craig Bierko, Vince Vaughn, and, yes, future Marvel filmmaker Jon Favreau. Favreau auditioned to play Chandler and was indeed one of the finalists. However, he turned the role down.
The reason why was covered by a 2011 article in *Vulture*. In short, Favreau wanted to make movies instead. At the time, he was trying to get his script *Swingers* made into a film, a project he also wanted to star in. Starring in *Friends* would have taken up too much of his time, preventing him from making *Swingers*.
Favreau finally made it happen by 1996, two years after *Friends* debuted, and it proved to be a wise career move. *Swingers* became an acclaimed indie hit and established Favreau as an important voice in ’90s independent filmmaking.
Prior to his *Friends* audition, Favreau only had small roles in notable films, appearing in the background of movies like *Folks!* and *Hoffa*. In 1993, he caught some attention playing D-Bob in the sports movie *Rudy*, and in 1994, he appeared on an episode of *Seinfeld* and in the movies *PCU* and Alan Rudolph’s *Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle*.
There’s every reason to believe Favreau would have done well on *Friends*, perhaps even becoming a more celebrated actor than he already is. But filmmaking was his preferred career path, and so he pursued that direction instead.
The *Friends* casting directors didn’t forget about Favreau, however. In 1997, they cast him in the recurring role of Pete Becker, an itinerant boyfriend of Rachel. Favreau appeared in six episodes of *Friends*, so he kind of got to have his cake and eat it too.
Some may feel that Favreau’s rejection of *Friends* was foolish, considering how rich and famous its stars eventually became. It’s well-known that by the show’s tenth and final season, the six leads commanded salaries of one million dollars per episode.
However, *Swingers* not only established Favreau’s credibility as a filmmaker but also made an impressive $4.6 million on a tiny $250,000 budget. Favreau supported himself by acting in films like *Deep Impact* and *Very Bad Things* before returning to directing with *Made* in 2001. Although *Made* didn’t cause quite as big a stir as *Swingers*, it was still a highly lauded hit.
In 2003, Favreau broke out commercially by directing *Elf*, a whimsical Christmas movie starring Will Ferrell. That film had a larger budget of $33 million, which Favreau handled with ease. *Elf* ended up making almost $229 million, cementing Favreau’s status as a legitimate hitmaker.
His 2005 film *Zathura: A Space Adventure* was only mildly beloved, but his 2008 film *Iron Man* became the storytelling and aesthetic cornerstone of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, one of the most financially successful action franchises of all time. Favreau oversaw several of those movies as a producer and even starred in a few.
Not to be outdone, Favreau began making the hit *Star Wars* tie-in series *The Mandalorian* in 2019, proving he could reach the highest heights Hollywood had to offer. Fans can look forward to the release of his feature film *The Mandalorian and Grogu* in 2026.
Given all these accomplishments, it’s fair to say that Favreau has few regrets when it comes to turning down the role of Chandler on *Friends*. His choice to follow his passion for filmmaking has clearly paid off, making him one of the most influential figures in modern Hollywood.
https://www.slashfilm.com/1994473/marvel-director-jon-favreau-turned-down-chandler-bing-friends/
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