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Trigger warning: Mentions of suicide and self-harm.
Rarely does a show come to screens that has an impact greater than NBC's Friends. The extremely popular sitcom that continues to influence the present generation and has fans from across the globe and from all walks of life. For such a show, every character needs to be at their best to have a powerful impact on their audience.
Friends had a fine cast and a finer supporting cast which involved more than half a hundred actors. Sadly, some of them are not around anymore. The shocking news of Gunther's death brings back memories of all the actors that have passed away since the show aired.
Iconic 'Friends' actors no longer with us
Here's a look at five memorable characters from Friends who are no longer around to grace fans with their presence.
1) James Michael Tyler (Gunther)
James Michael Tyler played a recurring role in Friends over the course of the series. He portrayed the cafe manager and one-time boss of Rachel Greene, Gunther. James' performance of Gunther was hilarious and the character's crush on Rachel was a thing straight out of slapstick comedies.
Unfortunately, James Michael Tyler died of prostate cancer at the age of 59 at his house in Los Angeles, but will be remembered forever for his memorable moments.
2) Stan Kirsch (Young Ethan)
Appearing in the Season 1 episode The One With The Ick Factor, Young Ethan left quite a strong impression on the audience. The iconic show is known for making memorable characters out of actors with just one appearance. Young Ethan was Monica's boyfriend who turned out to be a high school senior, resulting in a thread of hilarious incidents.
The actor was very young at the time of the episode. Kirsch commited suicide in 2020 at the age of 51.
3) Robin Williams (Tomas)
The legendary actor Robin Williams appeared on Friends as Tim, which was strangely a coincidence. Williams had just dropped by for coffee and his appearance on the show was completely improvised. Being the talented and charismatic actor he was, there is no shred of doubt that Williams left a lasting impression on the viewers.
Robin Williams committed suicide in 2014 after losing a battle with numerous physical and mental health issues.
4) Taylor Negron (Allesandro)
The head of Allesandro's Italian restaurant paid a visit to Monica's apartment personally after she wrote a review about them. In all its random hilarious glory, the seemingly intimidating episode ended up being one of the funniest in Friends, with Allesandro later offering Monica the job of head chef at his restaurant.
Taylor Negron brought this ecstatic character to life and cemented a long-lasting image in the minds of Friends fans. The veteran actor died of liver cancer in 2015 at the age of 57.
5) Ron Leibman (Dr. Leonard Greene)
Everyone remembers Dr. Leonard Greene despite his appearance being limited to only four episodes. Playing Rachel's father, Ron Leibman brought the uptight, well-to-do, and careless father to screen in all its blazing glory. Leibman also acted in many other memorable roles in his long career. He died from complications of pneumonia in 2019 at the age of 82.
Let us know of any actors from Friends we missed out on in the comments.
