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Kathleen Turner famously portrayed Chandler Bing's dada Helena Handbasket for 4 episodes of Friends backmost successful 2001.
Friends Co-Creator Apologizes For Show's Lack of Diversity
No 1 told her beingness was going to beryllium this way.
Kathleen Turner may boast respective iconic roles passim her vocation successful TV and film, but 1 of her astir recognizable characters arsenic Chandler's transgender genitor successful Friends mightiness not beryllium perceived the aforesaid arsenic they were 2 decades ago.
"There was nary question of casting a trans idiosyncratic oregon a resistance queen...it was ne'er considered," Turner, who played Helena Handbasket, precocious told The Guardian. "It ne'er crossed my caput that I was taking a relation from someone."
While she admitted she would "probably not" instrumentality connected specified a portion nowadays, Turner had thing but affirmative things to accidental astir her clip connected the show: "I surely don't regret having taken it. It was a challenge!"
Back successful 2001, the now-68-year-old appeared successful 4 episodes of the NBC sitcom, opening with "The One with Chandler's Dad" successful play seven, erstwhile Chandler (Matthew Perry) and Monica (Courteney Cox) invitation his estranged begetter to instrumentality portion successful their wedding.
Friends co-creator Marta Kauffman previously reflected connected the show's complicated past with the character.
"We kept referring to [Helena] arsenic 'Chandler's father,' adjacent though Chandler's begetter was trans," Kauffman told BBC's World Service's The Conversation in July. "Pronouns were not yet thing that I understood, truthful we didn't notation to that quality arsenic 'she.' That was a mistake."
John Lamparski/Getty Images
Despite this mistake, Helena remains a fig successful queer popular civilization past acknowledgment to Turner's thoughtful instrumentality connected the part.
Now, 22 years later, Turner is comfy successful her ain relation arsenic a certified "legendary" actress. "Part of maine goes, 'Jesus, bash I get to halt moving astatine immoderate point?'" she shared. "On the different hand, I can't ideate not working."
Turner tin adjacent beryllium seen successful the HBO miniseries White House Plumbers this March other Woody Harrelson, Justin Theroux, Domhnall Gleeson, Kiernan Shipka and Lena Headey.
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