Friends Breaks Racial Divide
Monday, March 12, 2001
NBC's Friends — often criticized for its lack of racial diversity — will be getting a little more colorful this Thursday. Gabrielle Union, star of last year's hit cheerleading flick Bring It On and a resident of CBS's now-defunct medical drama City of Angels, will pop up as a love interest for Ross (David Schwimmer)... and Joey (Matt LeBlanc).

"I'm this random girl that they both find attractive, and I date both of them — unbeknownst to the other," Union tells TV Guide Online, adding that her character moves into the neighborhood and catches the boys' eyes. "Ross comes along first and says, 'Oooh — hot chick.' He asks me out, and then Joey comes around and asks me out."

Though no fuss was made of the racial difference between Union and her leading men, the actress still couldn't help feeling like the 'black sheep' in the Friends family. Keeping an eye out for other African-Americans in the cast or crew, Union notes that "they have a black P.A.,... then, they have this black P.A....

"Maybe I'm being hard on them, but the good thing is that they are trying by hiring me," continues Union, whose latest film, The Brothers, opens March 23. "Their color-blind casting shows me that they are attempting to make an effort towards diversity."  — William Keck

TV Guide Online