Gunter From ‘Friends’ Looks Drastically Different Today At 59 Years Old

Jun 17, 2021

On September 22, 1994, an iconic television series aired for the first time. That show was the hugely successful sitcom "Friends," which would go on for ten seasons before ending in 2004. During that time, fans fell in love with all of the cast and characters from the show, including some minor characters.

Gunther, played by actor James Michael Tyler, is one of those special minor characters that captured the hearts of viewers. Gunther was a barista at the group's favorite coffee shop, Central Perk. Tyler's character was known for his grumbling responses and impatient attitude, except when it came to his unrequited love, Rachel. 

Tyler had only worked on one other production before appearing on the show. It was a short film called "The Roommate," and he portrayed a bar patron. After "Friends," Tyler went on to be featured on a number of television series, including Matt LeBlanc's "Episodes." He was recently in two short films back in 2020 and had a recurring role as Chad Levitz on the TV series "Modern Music" in 2013.

In 2019, "Friends" celebrated its 25th anniversary, and in 2021, HBO released "Friends: The Reunion," which was a special episode that brought all of the cast together for the first time in years. Tyler was included in the reunion special, to the delight of fans everywhere. No longer sporting his signature bleached blonde hair, the actor looks very different from how he was remembered 25 years ago. Read on to hear more about Tyler and his time on "Friends," and to see his current look. 

Tyler was born on May 28, 1962, in Greenwood, Mississippi. He is the youngest of five children and was named after his uncle. He grew up in Winona, Mississippi, and lost his father when he was ten and then his mother at age 11. When Tyler was 12, he moved to Anderson, South Carolina, to live with his older sister. 

Tyler graduated from Anderson College in 1982 with an Associate's degree. In 1984 he graduated from Clemson University with a Bachelor's degree in geology. While studying at Clemson, Tyler performed with a theater group called the Clemson Players. This experience is what sparked his interest in acting. In 1987, Tyler received a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Georgia. 

Tyler briefly lived in Olympia, Washington, where he sold cars after finishing his Master's. He moved to Los Angeles in 1988, where he became a production assistant and assistant editor on the horror film "Fat Man and Little Boy." He also worked as a barback at The Palace, sold keyboards at Guitar Center, and was a barista at the Bourgeois Pig before becoming a professional actor. It was while he was working as a barista that Tyler was discovered and offered the role of Gunther on "Friends." 

'Friends'

"Friends" aired for ten years, and during that time, Tyler appeared in 150 episodes. In the beginning of the series, Gunther had no lines and mostly appeared in the background of scenes at the Central Perk coffee shop. It wasn't until halfway through season two that Tyler spoke on the show, and his first line was simply "Yeah." Gunther was a stone-faced barista that only ever showed affection for the character Rachel, played by Jennifer Aniston, although the love was all one-sided.

The series was about a group of close friends living in New York City, and each episode's plot would show the hilarious hijinks and shenanigans they would get up to. "Friends" is still the most popular project Tyler has worked on in Hollywood. "Every five years they drag me out of retirement to come and talk about the show," he told TV and City in an interview from 2019. 

Tyler continued, "I know how blessed I was to have been a part of it. To have been a minor character on a major show, and as an actor to have had 10 years of steady work is unheard of, especially on a show of that caliber. It was a great learning experience for me." The actor sounds genuinely grateful to have played the role of Gunther. 

Tyler went into detail about getting discovered at a coffee shop in Los Angeles. "I had a Master of Fine Arts degree when I came to Los Angeles and of course like a lot of other struggling actors I ended up as a barista in real-life working at a real coffee shop. I went into the first day of 'Friends' because the assistant director said we need someone who can operate a real cappuccino machine, an espresso machine." 

Starting out as an actor in Hollywood was no picnic for Tyler. "They called me in and he said, 'you'll make 40 bucks and you'll get a meal,' which at the time was something I desperately needed: to supplement my income and to get a meal. Ten years later, who could have thought!" Imagine how different Tyler's life could have ended up had he not been working in that coffee shop at the time when they were casting the show.

When Tyler first began appearing as Gunther, he was just an extra with no lines. "The fact that after a year and a half the creators decided to create Gunther – to give him a name, and make him a character and to extend what was probably going to be a two-episode arc for his love for Rachel, unrequited love, they kept that up for 10 years. So there was a lot of kismet. I was very very very blessed and I don't take it lightly," said Tyler.

Tyler is able to look back at the show fondly. "It's interesting and fun watching it now, I can watch scenes without thinking, 'Oh Jennifer Anniston was good in that scene, David (Schwimmer) did well there.' I'm watching it with new eyes.I never had the opportunity until recently to watch it, so I could remove myself and have this suspension of disbelief [and] appreciate it for what it is," Tyler told Express.

One of the things that makes "Friends" such an enduring show is the way it captures the essence of the '90s and early 2000s. Tyler told TV and City, "One thing I find interesting is whether you could have a Central Perk or a 'Friends' today? It would be different because no one would be talking to each other in the coffee shop. They'd all be on their laptops, maybe texting each other, and the scripts would be like four pages long."

The actor continued:

 "It was a different time, a different culture, and I think that part of that nostalgia is what attracts people to it. It's a simpler time when people communicated more, even if it's a sitcom, but that was real life. I went through it, I'd go to coffee shops and have a conversation about music, art, things of importance."

The experience of meeting and making friends at a coffee shop has undoubtedly changed with time. 

The iconic blonde hair that Gunther had throughout the series was actually an accident. "I went in with the white hair kind of by mistake. A friend of mine had bleached it, literally the night before I went in as an extra. He was practicing on my head because he wanted to be a stylist. So I went in with this bleached hair and they put me behind the coffee counter and I guess the producers liked it. They were like, 'this is what a New York barista looks like in 1994.' So I had to keep that for all 10 seasons," Tyler explained.

Gunther's love for Rachel was the character's most defining characteristic, outside of the blond hair. "There wasn't really a lot to work with. I just kind of tried to play along with the dialogue that eventually increased over the seasons. Especially when they established Gunther's love, unrequited love for Rachel, they gave me a bit more to work with. So I worked with Jen and with that," Tyler told TV and City.

In an interview with The Sun, Tyler explained how hard the writing team worked to make sure every comedic moment on the show was as good as it could be. "If the jokes didn't get the right response, if they didn't land, they would cut the scene. The team was made up of extremely talented writers, and would always go after a better laugh," he explained.

Tyler had the chance to imagine what Gunther may be up to 25 years later. He said:

"Well hopefully he owns Central Perk by now, and he has some little kids running around with hair brighter than the sun."

In 1995, Tyler was married to Barbara Chadsey. The couple was together for almost 20 years but got divorced in 2014 due to irreconcilable differences. The actor remarried to Jennifer Carno, and the couple has been together ever since. They live together in Hollywood, California, with their leopard gecko, Rodney. 

Amazingly, Tyler's wife had never seen "Friends" when it originally aired, and the couple did not watch the show together until 2019. In an interview with Express, Tyler explained, "I've just started (watching) it again with my wife," he started. "She never really watched the show during its run and wasn't familiar with it even when we started dating."

Tyler never has to worry that his wife is only interested in him for his star factor because she has a very nonchalant way of speaking about "Friends." Tyler said, "She told her best friend she had started seeing this guy - we're on the fourth date and her friend was like, 'Wait, the actor guy from 'Friends,' Gunther?' and she was like, 'Oh yeah he's an actor, he was on 'Friends' but I didn't watch it.' So I guess that's good, she didn't marry into the Gunther fame!"

According to his IMDB biography, which he wrote himself, Tyler enjoys playing the "Rocket League" video game on the Playstation four. He also records music in his home studio and is one of the founding members of the collaborative improvisational music group Red Felt Pig. Tyler prefers to be called by his middle name, Michael. He is an avid supporter of the Lili Claire Foundation and AIDS Project L.A charities.

Today, Tyler is almost unrecognizable from how he looked when he appeared on "Friends." Tyler told Express that fans are often surprised when they meet him in person. "Gunther doesn't look like Gunther?! That's crazy," one fan wrote on Twitter after Tyler appeared on ITV's This Morning with Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby in 2019.

Another viewer tweeted, "That guy wouldn't even win a gunther lookalike competition." It is true that Tyler looks different without Gunther's signature blonde hair and gruff attitude. These days, the actor is sporting his natural brunette hair and a full beard, as well as glasses. So, he does look like a different person.

The difference in appearance is so drastic that some fans don't even realize who Tyler is. He told Express, "People tell me to get out of the way at these 'Friends' events and then they realise who I am and say, 'Oh I'm sorry!'"

At least, this way, Tyler is not harassed by fans out in public and is able to live his life under the radar. He said in the same interview, "I don't get recognised now, apparently I'm unrecognisable. But if I speak they're like, 'Gunther?! What happened?' I aged! It's been 25 years!" After that much time, anybody would look different, and it is perfectly normal. 

Tyler was involved in two short films in 2020 titled "Processing," and "The Gesture and The Word," but it is unclear if he will appear in any other mainstream projects anytime soon. Hopefully, he keeps getting roles, and we get to see more from this awesome actor in the future.

"Friends" has become one of the most popular sitcoms of all time. Were you a fan of the show when it aired? What do you think of Tyler's current appearance? Doesn't he look so different without blond hair? Let us know your thoughts, and be sure to send this story on to your friends and family.