While Matt LeBlanc has always been known for his role in Friends, there was another TV show of his called the Friends cast, but unfortunately, his spinoff didn’t resonate with audiences.

There have been many movies and TV shows starring the Friends cast since the show came to an end. For example, Courteney Cox was the lead of Cougar Town, and Jennifer Aniston made an even bigger name for herself in the world of rom-com movies. LeBlanc initially struggled to find further success after Friends, however, and the Joey spinoff didn’t help with that. That was, however, until an unusual little sitcom came along and changed Matt LeBlanc’s life — and career — forever.

Episodes Was The Right Show For Matt LeBlanc After His Friends Success

LeBlanc's Role In Episodes Allowed Him To Break Out Of The Friends Box

Showtime Episodes cast Matt LeBlanc, Stephen Mangan, and Tamsin Greig sitting at table.

Of course, it was initially strange to see Matt LeBlanc in a sitcom other than Friends. While it took a little time to get used to, especially as LeBlanc portrayed an overly fictionalized version of himself and not Joey Tribbiani, many viewers eventually realized that Episodes actually did more for the actor’s career than Joey. Seven years after Friends’ series finale, LeBlanc was reintroduced to audiences in Episodes, which saw the actor star in the US remake of a British couple’s TV show.

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Episodes also marked LeBlanc’s return to television after leading the only Friends spinoff, Joey. While LeBlanc’s industry comeback was exciting enough, it also provided him with a unique opportunity. Unfortunately, when you star in one of the greatest sitcoms ever, you’re likely to be ed as your character for the rest of your career. However, rather than trying to reinvent himself or take on a completely different character, LeBlanc steered into the ditch, embraced the meta-ness of it all, and boosted his career even further by playing a satirical interpretation of himself.

Whereas Joey Was An Uninspired Spinoff, Episodes Had A Genius Premise

The Concept Of Joey Wasn't Anything New, But Episodes' Was

Joey with his sister, Gina, and nephew, Michael, in a sports car, wearing sunglasses, and driving by a beach in the Friends spinoff Joey.

Joey Tribbiani was always a standout in Friends, but unfortunately, Joey proved that he was better as a ing comic relief character than a lead. Joey started airing only a few months after Friends ended, and so there wasn’t enough time for audiences to miss him. Joey followed the titular character as he moved to Hollywood and tried to finally make it big as an actor, reunited with his sister and nephew, and met an array of wacky new characters. The Friends spinoff failed for several reasons, but ultimately, it was because the story was relatively uninspired.

Joey ran for two seasons on NBC from 2004 to 2006, but it was inevitably canceled due to low ratings.

Episodes’ premise, however, was a breath of fresh air for the time. LeBlanc was back working with Friends creator David Crane, who knew how to write for the actor, and the fictional version of himself embraced his own similarities with the character of Joey Tribbiani. While LeBlanc was always LeBlanc, he didn’t brush Joey under the rug, and instead used him to his advantage. Episodes allowed LeBlanc to give a nod to the character who made him famous, but also let him show off the other talents in his wheelhouse by implying he was really an arrogant and spoiled diva.

Episodes May Have Been As Important To Matt LeBlanc As Friends Was

Episodes Launched A New Era Of Acting For LeBlanc

While Friends will always be the crown jewel in LeBlanc’s filmography, Episodes was just as integral to his career. Episodes allowed LeBlanc to do something most other sitcom actors failed at. He reinvented his career by acknowledging how important Joey Tribbiani was, and then leaned into the stereotype of the brazen over-the-top Hollywood star who clashed with the writers because he thought he knew better. LeBlanc knew the hype surrounding Joey Tribbiani and Friends wasn’t going anywhere, but he didn’t try to fight it, either.

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Episodes gave LeBlanc another long-running and popular role other than Friends, and even though he played himself, this was still an incredibly rare occurrence. Many sitcom actors have spent decades trying to revive their careers after a peak, and LeBlanc was one of the few who managed to do so.

LeBlanc’s success in Episodes not only revived his career at the time, but it also set him up for future endeavours. In 2016, Matt LeBlanc became one of the hosts of Top Gear after he appeared in a single episode back in 2012, for example. He also portrayed patriarch Adam Burns in the CBS sitcom Man with a Plan, which ran from 2016 to 2020. Between Friends and Episodes, Matt LeBlanc’s success was sealed a long time ago, and it was a relief that the latter show made up for the failure that was the two-season spinoff Joey.