Lisa Kudrow opens up about getting fired from Frasier after being cast as Roz

Actress Lisa Kudrow spoke to the Smartless podcast on Monday, July 29, 2024, and discussed being fired from Frasier. She told the hosts, Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, and Will Arnett, that it was "devastating" to be fired from the show.

"I didn't film it. I got fired from Frasier," Kudrow said about the NBC sitcom.

Speaking on the Smartless Podcast, Kudrow said she was supposed to play the role of Roz Doyle, one of the producers of the fictional Dr. Frasier Crane Show. She noted that she was set to appear in the pilot of the 11-season run of the NBC show. However, Lisa Kudrow added that before the filming for the show began, she was fired from the show. Peri Gilpin replaced Kudrow as Roz on Frasier.

Kudrow also told the podcast hosts that James Burrows, the director of the show's pilot season, approached her during the Season 1 run-through. She noted that Burrows told her it wasn't working out before removing her from the show.

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Lisa Kudrow talks about "devastating" firing from Frasier

The actress, who recently turned 61, called the firing "devastating." She said that she was initially confused about it and recalled trying to find out if there was anything she could do to make it work.

"I was trying to like [ask], 'What can I do?' But I think they did make a casting mistake because I went to the network with Peri Gilpin," Lisa said.

While it was devastating to be taken off the show, Lisa Kudrow admitted that she understood the reasoning behind it. She also said that having Peri Gilpin take on the role of Roz was the right call by the production. The actress noted that the makers of Frasier were "just correcting a mistake," as she believed Peri "should have always been Roz."

Lisa Kudrow also admitted that getting fired from Frasier was ultimately a good thing for her and her career. This was because she landed a guest-starring role in Mad About You soon after. She played the role of Ursula Buffay in the show that starred Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt.

The Time Bandits star said that the role changed a lot for her. She recalled her agents advising her not to book the role since it was for a "Waitress," but she went ahead and did so because she thought that it was "the best show." While she initially played an unnamed character, showrunner Danny Jacobson found her "so funny" that he invited her to do five more episodes for the series.

Ultimately, her short stint in Mad About You brought Lisa Kudrow to Friends. Jeffrey Klarik, Mad About You's writer and producer, as well as Friends creator David Crane's partner, suggested that she play Phoebe in the Emmy-winning show. The long-running sitcom aired for ten seasons on NBC.