There are many things Friends co-creator Marta Kauffman would do differently with the popular comedy series if it were on the air today, and one change would be the treatment of a featured transgender character. Recently, Kauffman expressed regret over the lack of diversity in the show’s leading cast, as all six main characters were played by white actors. Kauffman has now come out with. Feeling embarrassed about it now, Kauffman also pledged a $4 million donation to her alma mater, Brandeis University, to help put forth a professorship in the school’s African and African American studies department.

In a new interview with The Conversation on the BBC World Service (per Variety), Kauffman has spoken out about another regret associated with Friends. Kauffman says she has since become much more educated on preferred pronouns when it comes to the transgender community but says she wasn’t very aware of them at the time. That led to Chandler’s (Matthew Perry) transgender mother, played by Kathleen Turner, to be referred to as his “father.” The character was also referred to with he/him pronounds when they should have used she/her, Kauffman explains.

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

One reason why Kauffman feels so passionate about this is that it’s important for her to have sets that are all-inclusive, welcoming, and friendly. She refers to a time when she fired one crew member over transgender jokes as an example of how seriously she is taking this approach.

Kathleen Turner Would Not Play a Transgender Character Today

     NBC

Kathleen Turner has also spoken about how she would not play Chandler’s transgender mother or a similar role if she were offered that today. The actress explained how there are plenty of actors from the transgender community to take on that role these days leaving her no reason to take the part. Here’s what Turner said about playing the role today, via Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen.

It’s not without its controversy, but Friends remains one of the most popular sitcoms of all time. You can find the series streaming on HBO Max.