LOS ANGELES – Friends actor James Michael Tyler, best known for playing Central Perk cafe’s manager Gunther, revealed that he has stage 4 prostate cancer and is now unable to walk.
The 59-year-old actor who had featured in all the ten seasons of a fortunate comedy series from 1994 to 2004, came to NBC’s Today show on Monday, Jun 21 looking completely unrecognisable.
He was diagnosed with prostate cancer in Sept of 2018, which migrated to his bones. Physicians detected the illness during a regular examination and he is currently undergoing treatment with hormone therapy.
Tyler appeared via Zoom on the Friends: The Reunion special, which reunited the main cast, last month featuring Courteney Cox, David Schwimmer, Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, and Matthew Perry.
“It was the most memorable 10 years of my life, honestly,” he stated to the sitcom.
During the reunion, he refused to disclose his condition, stating: “I didn’t want it to be like, ‘Oh, and by the way, Gunther has cancer’.”
Tyler was the most frequent guest star on Friends, and his character Gunther, who was secretly in love with Aniston’s Rachel, was a fan favourite.
Tyler stated that the show’s producers were aware of his condition “for a long time,” and that Schwimmer had reached out to him via Instagram.
Tyler stated that his condition began “mutating” during the epidemic and that he is now unable to walk because of tumours on his spine.
“Of course, it’s stage 4. Late-stage cancer. So eventually, you know, it’s gonna probably get me,” he added, advising viewers to get a prostate-specific antigen test when they visit their doctor for a physical.
While he was cheery and matter-of-fact for the majority of the conversation, he had to fight back tears when he stated that early detection is critical and that he regretted not listening to his wife.
“I would have listened to my lovely wife — who has been my entire support throughout all of this,” he remarked when asked if there was anything he would have done differently.
“I would’ve gone in earlier and it would’ve been hopefully caught earlier.”
Divyanshi Singh is an intern at The Independent SG. /TISG