Zoë Kravitz hasn’t held back when it comes to sharing her thoughts on Friends.
The 90s sitcom remains one of the most popular TV shows ever made, with 200+ episodes still streaming on HBO Max after leaving Netflix in 2020. But while the series continues to have a loyal fan base, Kravitz doesn’t think every aspect of the show has aged well.
The actress has been promoting her new movie Caught Stealing alongside co-star Austin Butler. The film is set in the 90s, and the pair recently spoke about what they loved about the decade — and what they didn’t.
"[I'm] really nostalgic for that time," Kravitz told PEOPLE. "Then also the fashion, all that stuff's so cool. New York City and the grunge."
Butler agreed, adding: "Even just being in the apartment [on set] and seeing the Nintendo 64 on top of the TV. We had the GoldenEye [video game], I saw that."
He also mentioned missing a time when people weren’t glued to their phones.
But Kravitz pointed out a much darker side of 90s pop culture, saying: "Super homophobic jokes on mainstream television. If you watch Friends now, you're like, 'Whoa, that's...'."
When Butler reacted in surprise, Kravitz doubled down: "Oh, so much in Friends. Like, things that aren't punchlines are punchlines. It's wild. So maybe that? We can keep that there."
Butler agreed, saying it was best to “keep that in the 90s.”
Even the show’s creators have previously admitted some regret over its writing. In 2019, Marta Kauffman told USA Today: "Every time I watch an episode, there’s something I wish I could have changed. Like, how did we leave that joke in there? Or, really, that storyline? That’s what we went with?"
She went on to reflect on how the sitcom might look today: "I think we didn’t have the knowledge about transgender people back then, so I’m not sure if we used the appropriate terms. I don’t know if I would have known those terms back then. I think that’s the biggest one."
Friends first aired in 1994 and ran for 10 seasons before wrapping in 2004.