Friends Reunion Reveals Why David Schwimmer Hated Ross’ Monkey Marcel
Friends: The Reunion on HBO Max revealed many behind-the-scenes tidbits, including why David Schwimmer hated his character Ross’ pet monkey Marcel.
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Friends: The Reunion revealed, among other little-known show facts, that David Schwimmer actually hated his pet monkey Marcel from the earlier seasons. HBO Max just released a reunion special of the cast of Friends 17 years after the series ended, diving into behind-the-scenes anecdotes, cast secrets, and how the show changed the lives of those involved forever. The reunion was the second time the cast had all been together in the same room since the show’s finale, exhibiting a bittersweet trip down memory lane for six fictional and real-life best friends.
While not completely unusual for people in their 20s living in New York City, the Friends characters notably don’t have pets. The main exceptions to this rule are Ross Geller’s season 1 pet capuchin monkey, Marcel, and Rachel Green’s terrifying Sphynx cat, Mrs. Whiskerson, in season 6. In the season 1 episode “The One With The Monkey,” Ross shows up to his sister Monica’s New Year’s Eve party with Marcel as his date, surprising all his friends with his impulsivity. Ross is an expectant father at this point, and a pet monkey isn’t the typical trial run for fatherhood that one envisions. Marcel is then sporadically featured in seasons 1, with a few episodes exploring his and Ross’ relationship.
When an audience member at Friends: The Reunion asked the cast if there was a part of the show they didn’t enjoy, David Schwimmer quickly answered: “The monkey.” Schwimmer explained that while the monkey was trained, if he missed his mark, the comedic timing of the actors in the rest of the scene would be completely ruined and they would have to restart. He also explained that in between takes Marcel would rest on his shoulder, where his trainer would feed him live grub. This sounds gross in itself, but it’s worse when David Schwimmer reveals the monkey would touch his face and hair with dirty insect-grub hands. To the same question, Courteney Cox (Monica) stated the monkey scared her, while Jennifer Aniston – who did share a few scenes with Marcel – claimed to have loved him.
Once introduced, the first season featured Marcel whenever the gang went to Ross’s place and certain moments when at Monica and Rachel’s apartment. The monkey was known for his mischief, including an episode where he runs loose through Monica and Chandler’s apartment complex while Rachel is “babysitting” him. Rachel losing Marcel causes one of the only major riffs between the forthcoming Ross and Rachel romance in Friends’ first season, though he quickly forgives her and apologizes for accusing her of lacking responsibility. An episode in which the gang plays poker reveals Marcel, at the annoyance of Ross, also has a fondness for the song “The Lion Sleeps Tonight.”
Thankfully for Schwimmer, Marcel was essentially written out of Friends at the end of season 1. His story arc ended in “The One With The Fake Monica,” where Ross discovers that Marcel has reached sexual maturity and needs to be given away to a zoo. Marcel was accepted into the San Diego Zoo, and though Ross was deeply upset, Schwimmer must have been glowing inside. Marcel was likely written out because Ross’s son Ben was born and they would have rather explored his real fatherhood, though the monkey did make a reappearance in Friends’ season 2 two-part episode “The One After The Superbowl.” Marcel was revealed to have been taken from the zoo, launched into a film career, and ended up filming a movie with Jean-Claude Vandamme in New York City where he was able to reunite with Ross for one final time – likely to David Schwimmer’s dismay.
Link Source : https://screenrant.com/friends-reunion-marcel-monkey-david-schwimmer-hate-ross/