Among the trio of Chandler, Ross, and Joey, it was Matthew Perry’s Chandler who seemingly had the worst luck compared to his pals with women, which makes his successful marriage to Monica all the more fascinating. From Joanna to Ginger, Chandler had some tough luck in the realm of dating, which often stemmed from misunderstandings and awkwardness.
Although on paper, both Ross and Joey put the king of dry humor to shame when it comes to dating, interestingly, it was Chandler himself who was holding himself back.
Chandler’s shortcomings in Friends stemmed from his own insecurities
Amidst the hilarity of many of Chandler’s botched attempts at dating, most of these issues often boiled down to his own insecurities and social anxiety. Despite being the king of dry humor and traditionally attractive, oftentimes, his social anxiety and self-doubts got the better of him.
Moreover, Chandler is at his best when he’s actively not trying to flirt, thus, he doesn’t self-destruct and sabotage his way out of a potential long-term relationship, which might have to deal with his unstable childhood. While Ross’ academic appeal and Joey’s raw charisma contributed to their exploits in the realm of dating, Chandler, when not overwhelmed by his own insecurities, showcased immense emotional depth and wit.
This is especially highlighted when Kathy and the Dutch girl, Margha, preferred him over Joey, at least in the beginning, before he dropped the ball again by celebrating obnoxiously, leading to Margha passing on them. Considering he was also the first one to have a shot at a happy marriage amidst the two, it explains that Matthew Perry‘s Chandler was being held back by his own self.
Matthew Perry stopped writers from tarnishing Chandler’s reputation
Interestingly, in season 5 of Friends, Chandler came close to tarnishing his reputation after the writers entertained the prospect of infidelity on his part. Lisa Cash, who appeared as a flight attendant in the Vegas episode, confessed her original role involved a cheating angle, as after Chandler and Monica’s argument, she revealed the former would’ve ended up cheating on Monica.
She further revealed to TMZ:
I came in as a guest star and I was super excited. The scene was Chandler and Monica were arguing in Vegas about having lunch with Richard. Initially in our script, Chandler goes up to the hotel room, orders room service and I bring it up [to him] as a hotel worker. We end up talking and laughing and connecting and Chandler ends up cheating on Monica with my character.
Given how much controversy the Ross and Rachel thing pulled when the writers opted to include the storyline with the copy shop girl, it’s safe to say fans wouldn’t have taken kindly to Chandler cheating on Monica. Fortunately, the storyline was ultimately scrapped, reportedly after Perry voiced concerns.
FRIENDS is now available to be streamed on Max (USA).
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