Jennifer Aniston marked the death of “Friends” director James Burrows with an emotional Instagram tribute, calling the late 11-time Emmy winner a “father figure” who taught her and her co-stars to love, respect, and support one another.
On Saturday. Jennifer Aniston returned to the words that still felt like part of the set—“Papa Burrows.” She posted an Instagram tribute mourning the late “Friends” director James Burrows. calling the 11-time Emmy winner a “father figure” and describing the check-ins. care. and guidance that stayed with her long after filming ended.
In her message, Aniston focused on Burrows’s way of making people feel safe and seen. “Oh boy… Papa Burrows. The hardest thing about writing this is that you spent a lifetime making people feel loved. and now it feels impossible to put all of that love into a few paragraphs. ” she wrote. She remembered how he referred to the cast as his “kids. ” asking. “Where are the kids?” and urging. “Let’s see if the kids can make the joke work.” “No pressure. ” she added. capturing the tenderness behind the direction.
Aniston said Burrows’s own family “were generous enough to share him with all of us who were lucky enough to experience his unicorn presence.” Then she made it personal: “He was a father figure to me. He always checked in on me. He worried about me. celebrated me. taught me. guided me and held me through the hardest times and the best of times. He spoiled us rotten.”.
Her tribute also carried a lesson Burrows seemed to pass along as part of the work. “Most of all, he taught us — the kids — how important it is to love and respect one another. To take care of each other. To have each other’s backs and support each other, no matter what. And we did just that.”
Aniston ended with the sounds and presence she couldn’t replace. “I miss your voice. I miss your laugh. I miss your brilliance,” she wrote. “Wherever you are, I hope someone is asking, ‘Where are the kids?’”
Burrows and Aniston worked together on 15 episodes of the hit NBC sitcom between 1994 and ’98. In the announcement of his death at age 85 on Friday. Burrows’s family listed “Friends” among his greatest hits. alongside other iconic series he helped shape. His loved one shared that Burrows directed more than 1. 000 episodes of television and was instrumental in creating series including “The Mary Tyler Moore Show. ” “Taxi. ” “Cheers. ” “Frasier. ” “Friends. ” “Will & Grace. ” and “The Big Bang Theory. ” among many others.
Several of Aniston’s former co-stars also honored Burrows. Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer, and Matt LeBlanc were among the A-Listers who shared messages in his honor.
Burrows is survived by four daughters, seven grandchildren, and his wife Debbie.
Jennifer Aniston James Burrows Friends NBC Instagram tribute Papa Burrows Emmy winner Lisa Kudrow David Schwimmer Matt LeBlanc
Papa Burrows?? so like was he actually her dad or just a nickname
Aww I loved Friends but I didn’t know he did all that other stuff too. 1000 episodes is insane. Makes me sad though, they were all so supportive on set.
So she’s calling him “father figure” but they only worked together like 4 years on Friends, right? Idk I’m sure he was a nice guy, just weird how people make it sound like a whole life relationship from a sitcom. Still RIP I guess.
I always thought the director didn’t matter that much, like the actors carry it… but this kinda shows why it did. “Where are the kids?” sounds like something my uncle would say when he’s trying to get everyone laughing. I saw this on my feed and started crying before I even finished reading lol. 85 too… man.