Lisa Kudrow is keeping it refreshingly real when it comes to love and her decades-long marriage. While attending the season 3 premiere of “The Comeback,” Lisa Kudrow opened up about what has kept her relationship with husband Michel Stern going strong for nearly 30 years, and according to her, it’s not complicated.
Lisa Kudrow Credits Simple Mindset For Lasting Love
“I think that’s all there is to it,” she said, per PEOPLE. “Mutual respect for the most part. But definitely wanting to stay together and then relearning mutual respect, practicing mutual respect and listening.”
Kudrow also reflected on the timing of her relationship, revealing that meeting Stern before her rise to fame played a major role in their lasting connection. The two first crossed paths in the late 1980s, when Stern was dating Kudrow’s roommate, and eventually built a relationship that led to marriage in 1995, just one year after Friends premiered.
“I feel like the luckiest thing that happened to me was that I met and fell in love with the man I was going to spend the rest of my life with before Friends, right before,” she said.
Kudrow Gets Real About What Marriage Actually Takes
For Kudrow, a successful marriage isn’t about perfection, but it’s about commitment and effort. “When we decided to get married, we understood: We’re not promising to love each other forever… but we are promising to work on whatever problems come up,” she shared. “We’re committed to our marriage working.”
She also emphasized the importance of individuality within a partnership. “I think people get in trouble when they assume they’re supposed to be one unit,” she added. “[Marriage] is like being on a team. Each teammate is different, but you have the same goal.”
Lisa Kudrow Has Awkward ‘Mom Mode’ Moment On Set
The premiere wasn’t just a date night for Kudrow and Stern, but it also turned into a family affair. The couple was joined by their 27-year-old son, Julian Murray Stern, who appears in the latest season of “The Comeback.” Kudrow couldn’t help but laugh while recalling a moment on set when she accidentally slipped into full mom mode.
“I was kind of tired, and my brain was just a little fuzzy, and I’ve been looking at lines,” she explained. “I walked in, and I saw Julian sitting on the couch with some other people, like, ‘Oh,’ and just walked over and climbed onto the couch right next to him and cuddled in.”
The unexpected moment didn’t go unnoticed by those around her. “And everyone just went … And he went, ‘Hi, Mom,’ and everyone was looking,” she continued. “It was maybe inappropriate, just like to climb on him. I think some people didn’t know he was my son. So they were still wondering, ‘What’s happening right now?’ ”
Inside Kudrow’s Decades-Long Marriage To Michel Stern
The actress married the advertising executive on May 27, 1995, in a ceremony held in Malibu, California, shortly after the first season of Friends wrapped. More than three decades later, the couple is still going strong and has built a life together that includes their son, Julian Murray Stern, whom they welcomed in 1998.
“When [Michel and I] decided to get married, we understood: We’re not promising to love each other forever, because you can’t do that, but we are promising to work on whatever problems come up,” she said when celebrating her 25th anniversary. “We’re committed to our marriage working. It turns out, after you have a history, there’s such a bond, and love takes another shape. But, oh, I don’t want to jinx it—I’m superstitious!”
“[Michel and I] respect each other’s independence, and I don’t mean that as a euphemism,” she continued. “I don’t mean relationship-wise outside the marriage. Clear? But I don’t like to travel. So if he wants to go on a golf trip, he goes.
The “Friends” actress went on to say, “I think people get in trouble [when they assume they’re] supposed to be one unit, in sync about everything. [Marriage] is like being on a team. Each teammate is different, but you have the same goal.”
Lisa Kudrow Says Marriage Really Is This Simple
At the end of the day, Kudrow’s message about marriage is clear. Through decades of change, career highs, and personal milestones, she and Stern have remained grounded in respect, communication, and a shared commitment to making it work.
And for Kudrow, that’s really all there is to it.
