Jane Sibbett played Carol, Ross's ex-wife, on Friends - but she was offered the role of Rachel, which went to Jennifer Aniston. Photo / Supplied
Jane Sibbett played Carol, Ross's ex-wife, on Friends - but she was offered the role of Rachel, which went to Jennifer Aniston. Photo / Supplied
Jennifer Aniston has Friends to thank for catapulting her to global superstardom.
But her portrayal as her most iconic role almost wasn't to be.
One of the sitcom's regular guest stars, Jane Sibbett (who played Ross' ex-wife Carol Willick across 15 episodes) was initially offered the part of Rachel Green.
"I actually was up for another character. They wanted me to be one of the main six," Sibbett revealed in an interview with news.com.au.
"It was actually Rachel but I usually don't tell people that because Jen … There's no one who could've done it like Jen."
The big question then is … Why did Sibbett knock it back?
"I asked them (agents) if they'd told the producers I was pregnant (at the time) and they said, 'Oh no, we thought we'd tell them later.' And I said, 'No, you've got to tell them now.'
"So obviously they (producers) said it wouldn't work out.
"I have no regrets, my goodness, there's no way anybody could have come close to what Jennifer Aniston did with Rachel. She was so perfect."
Given she'd read the script, Sibbett thought she'd be perfect to play Carol, Ross' ex-wife who realises she's a lesbian but is pregnant with his child.
However the timing didn't quite work out. At first, Carol was portrayed by actress Anita Barone but she abruptly quit after the pilot and was replaced by Sibbett for the remainder of the show, which just hit streaming on Binge.
"So I got home from hospital after giving birth to my son and I got a phone call saying that they were replacing Carol and could I come to work the next day," Sibbett said.
"Two days after I delivered my son he and I were on the set. I was in a milky haze. But it was funny. It was only supposed to be a two-week job so I'm very grateful."
Friends kicks off with Ross in the middle of a divorce from Carol who had met Susan Bunch (Jessica Hecht) at the gym and fallen in love. She then leaves Ross but soon realises she is pregnant with their future son, Ben.
Carol gives birth in the first season in a chaotic scene where the entire Friends gang is also in the delivery room. And Sibbett informs us the reality was just as manic.
"The whole time here I am literally in stirrups in front of an audience of 200 people. Of course I had underpants on, but still," she said.
"Johnny Silverman (who played obstetrician Dr Franzblau) was so into his work he kept touching me in a way that was delivering the baby and I was like 'Johnny you can't do that, it's distracting, too many people are here!'
"So we'd go again and he did it again and I'd be like, 'Johnny a little to the left!'
"It was a really emotional scene, I'd just delivered my son, so I was crying.
"I was not very funny, but everyone around me was funny."
In January 1996 Carol and Susan's wedding aired in the US, a groundbreaking move from the NBC at the time which caused major backlash.
And Sibbett suffered her own personal adversity as a result.
"I actually had a woman from my old church confront me and say, 'How dare you? You're going to burn in hell,'" Sibbett said.
"But personally, my own father had a hard time with it. I come from a very conservative Christian background. My own dad had bible study at 8 o'clock when Friends was on in America because he wasn't comfortable with it.
"But finally after a few years, people were sending him articles about how beautiful these characters were handling such a delicate subject and he began to understand."
'The one with the lesbian wedding' aired in 1996. Photo / Supplied
And while some critics think certain storylines in Friends haven't aged well, Sibbett said all the jokes made on the series about homosexuality were aimed at those who didn't approve.
"It was the homophobes that were getting poked fun of," she said. "Anyone who had trouble with it, the joke was on them.
"We made it not about stereotypical lesbians but just two women in love and love always ages well.
"Still to this day I get letters from people in conservative districts – I got a letter from Africa a little while ago and Friends is newly on there for the first time, and it gave two women the courage to talk to their parents about it and now they're getting married.
Sibbett appeared on Friends across seven seasons, and while she said working with the cast who were "so inclusive" was a dream, her highlight was having a profound impact on the gay and lesbian community.
"A man asked me if I would accept an award on behalf of the show and when he was presenting the award in front of hundreds of people said, 'If I had have had Carol and Susan as my role models growing up, I wouldn't have tried to commit suicide so many times. Thank you for being courageous with your own career and showing that love is the most important thing for me'.
