David Schwimmer Wants to ‘Be Taken More Seriously’ in Hollywood — With Help From Jennifer Aniston

David Schwimmer is going all in on a big Hollywood comeback or reboot, a source exclusively tells Closer, adding that close pal Jennifer Aniston is helping him every step of the way.

David, 57, and his Friends costar, 55, reunited on the small screen for a 2024 Super Bowl commercial that aired in February in which Jennifer cheekily forgot who he is, and sources say David hoping to do more than just a comical Uber Eats ad.

“David’s hope is that he and Jen can team up on more than just a silly Uber Eats commercial, no matter how much it paid,” says the source, noting that their reunion was a long time coming.

“Jen and David did not spend a lot of time together in the period between the end of her marriage [to first husband Brad Pitt] in 2005 and the mid-pandemic Friends reunion in 2021,” the insider explains. “That’s why the joke about Jen ‘forgetting’ David in that Super Bowl commercial played almost like an inside joke — David and Jen don’t really casually socialize at all except for official Friends business like their TV special.”

Still, after 10 seasons playing love interests Rachel Green and Ross Geller, they’ll always be there for one another.

“There is a deep connection there from their years of working together, and David is pretty bowled over by what Jen has managed to accomplish with The Morning Show, it’s a big deal what Jen has pulled off there,” the source says of Jennifer’s hit Apple TV+ drama. “David wants something like that for himself, with Jen’s help if possible.”

Though he is best known for playing nerdy paleontologist Ross in Friends, David has since branched out into other film, television and stage work — and he has also directed and produced. With Jennifer’s help, the source says David is hoping for his next big gig.

“A lot of this goes back to who David was before he got Friends and even back to his college days: this guy was an absolutely killer dramatic actor and serious leading man,” the source notes. “He wouldn’t give up the Friends money or success but he admits to people he knows that he’s had a very different career than he ever imagined and that the few times he got to hit the drama bullseye — or come close — like the O.J. Simpson mini-series [The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story] or his forgotten ’90s dramedy The Pallbearer were major moments for him, and he has never been shy about wanting to be taken more seriously.”

Following the tragic death of Friends costar Matthew Perry, who was found unresponsive in a hot tub at his home in Los Angeles on October 28, 2023, all eyes are on the remaining cast members.

“The continued popularity of Friends after Matthew Perry’s passing does present a special moment for all of the surviving cast,” says the source, noting that Jennifer’s superstardom may be the perfect thing to help David get back on top.

“Jen’s edgy performance and skillful producing on The Morning Show has her mostly living out a dream that David has had since he was a teenager,” adds the source, “but he’s not done yet!”