lifetime making people feel loved<\/a>, and now it feels impossible to put all of that love into a few paragraphs,\u201d Aniston shared on Instagram Saturday alongside photos of Burrows with the Friends cast.<\/p>\n\u201cHe called us his kids \u2014 \u2018where are the kids?,\u2019\u2028\u2019let\u2019s see if the kids can make the joke work,\u2019 no pressure.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis own incredible children were generous enough to share him with all of us who were lucky enough to experience his unicorn presence.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was a father figure to me. He always checked in on me. He worried about me, celebrated me, taught me, guided me, and held me through the hardest times and the best of times. He spoiled us rotten.<\/p>\n
![\"Jennifer](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/72959641...jpeg\")
Jennifer Aniston (L) and director James Burrows pose in the audience during the 33rd Annual People’s Choice Awards held at the Shrine Auditorium on January 9, 2007 (Getty)<\/p>\n
\u201cMost of all, he taught us \u2014 the kids \u2014 how important it is to love and respect one another. To take care of each other. To have each other\u2019s backs and support each other, no matter what, and we did just that.<\/p>\n
\u201cI miss your voice. I miss your laugh. I miss your brilliance.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Hailed by many as the master of the modern sitcom, Burrows co-created the beloved 1980s comedy Cheers, directed 75 episodes of Taxi, and oversaw every episode of Will & Grace throughout its original run and revival, from 1998 to 2020.<\/p>\n
He won 11 Emmy Awards over a career spanning more than 50 years.<\/p>\n
Schwimmer, 59, who played Ross Geller in Friends, shared Aniston\u2019s sentiments in a tribute of his own.<\/p>\n
He added: \u201cJimmy Burrows brought out the best in every actor he ever worked with, and elevated every show he directed, making it funnier and more moving than anyone expected.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis warmth, humility and generosity made us feel safe, like family, and I\u2019m sure we weren\u2019t the only cast to feel that way. He looked out for us, on camera and off.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe became another father figure for me, and I\u2019m sure others.<\/p>\n
\u201cPaternal in the best sense of the word, loving, wise, encouraging, challenging, instructive, patient, inspiring, playful \u2014 and on my best days, I\u2019d like to think, even proud.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"James](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/2206924967...jpeg\")
James Burrows (pictured in LA in 2025) died at the age of 85, his family announced on Friday (Getty)<\/p>\n
He added that he was already missing the director, to whom he said he would be \u201cforever grateful.\u201d The social media post was accompanied by a black-and-white photograph of Chandler Bing actor Matthew Perry alongside Burrows and Matt LeBlanc.<\/p>\n
LeBlanc, 58, who played Joey Tribbiani in Friends, added: \u201cJimmy, words cannot describe the impact and influence you had on us and everyone who was lucky enough to have known you.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou sir are a true icon on so many levels. Well wishes in your next act. You will be missed. God bless.\u201d<\/p>\n
LeBlanc\u2019s post was accompanied by a picture of him and Burrows at Wembley Stadium in London.<\/p>\n
Kudrow, 62, who played Phoebe Buffay in Friends, posted a picture of herself with Burrows next to his director\u2019s chair on her Instagram Story.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
In a statement announcing his death, shared with People, Burrows\u2019 family said: \u201cWe celebrate the extraordinary life and enduring legacy of James \u2018Jimmy\u2019 Burrows, who passed away peacefully today surrounded by his loving family.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor more than five decades, Burrows was one of the most influential and beloved directors in television history.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a legendary director, mentor, and creative force, he helped shape generations of comedy and brought immeasurable joy to audiences around the world.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":650869,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[96,391,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-650868","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tv","tag-entertainment","tag-tv","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/650868","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=650868"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/650868\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/650869"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=650868"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=650868"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=650868"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}