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Stephen Colbert is one of the leading late night show hosts who are currently active. His $16 million annual pay as the host of CBS' The Late Show with Stephen Colbert makes him the king of late night salaries.
Since 2015, he has been in the main chair on the high-rated talk show, having replaced the legendary David Letterman in the slot. Prior to that, Colbert had worked as the host of The Colbert Report and as a correspondent on The Daily Show, mostly during the tenure of Jon Stewart.
Adding that to his experience as a writer on Saturday Night Live and The Dana Carvey Show, the 58-year-old has been in the spheres of sketch comedy and late-night talk shows for well over two decades.
Colbert is a versatile artist, all the same, and he has also proven his chops as an actor over the years. He has appeared in dozens of movies and TV shows, but at the same time, he missed out on a number of roles.
One of the biggest productions that Colbert was turned down for was the NBC sitcom Friends, following a failed audition.
What Happened During Stephen Colbert's Audition For 'Friends'?
Stephen Colbert spoke about his failed audition for Friends back in May 2021, when he welcomed Lisa Kudrow to his show. The actress is of course famous for playing Phoebe Buffay on the famous sitcom.
In the conversation, he disclosed to Kudrow that he had tried to land a bit-part role on their show. "You know, I auditioned once to do a one-week story on Friends," he said. "I was in LA, young actor. I got called in, auditioned on the set and everything like that."
"Basically, if I got it they would have pushed me in a room and I would have started working with you guys," he continued, before adding that he was experiencing a dearth of opportunities at the time.
"I didn’t get it," Colbert said. "I’m sure you would have remembered working with a Stephen Colbert. And, boy, did I need a gig at the time!" Kudrow concurred, saying that she would have definitely remembered him had they worked together.
Friends ran on NBC for ten years starting September 1994, and with the final episode airing in May 2004.
Why Did Stephen Colbert Fail His 'Friends' Audition?
Stephen Colbert started working in television in the early '90s. His first stable gig didn't arrive until 1997, though, when he joined Craig Kilborn on The Daily Show, about two years before the host was replaced by Jon Stewart.
Considering how dire Colbert described his situation as being when he auditioned for Friends, it would make sense to project that this would have likely been in the earlier part of the '90s, before he started landing regular jobs.
In his chat with Lisa Kudrow, he never delved into the particular details of any feedback he might have received after the audition, but the fact that he had very little-to-no experience as an actor would have likely played a role in his failure to secure the part.
Colbert also told Kudrow how as a young artist, whenever he was out of work, he would feel like he would never find another opportunity to work.
Kudrow backed this perspective up, albeit based on reverse circumstances. "When I was on Friends," she said, "I thought 'I will always be working. There's no end in sight for this show!'"
Inside Stephen Colbert's Acting Career
While Stephen Colbert will very likely be remembered for his work as a late night show host, he still has quite an enviable resume as an actor. In 1993, he played his first ever scripted role, in an episode of the ABC crime drama series, Missing Persons.
Between 1995 and 1996, he made his foray into sketch comedy, as he portrayed various characters on Comedy Central's Exit 57 and The Dana Carvey Show, also on ABC. The following year, he started his stint on The Daily Show, where he would go on to feature as correspondent or writer in a total of 1,316 episodes.
Over the years, Colbert has also played a variety of roles in movies like Bewitched, Strangers with Candy and Monsters vs. Aliens, as well as TV shows such as Curb Your Enthusiasm and The Mindy Project.
Friends was not the first sitcom that Colbert failed an audition in, as he was also once turned down for the part of Screech in Sam Bobrick's Saved by the Bell.