Why Jennifer Aniston Says It Was 'Cathartic' to Play a Celeb on The Morning Show

Jennifer Aniston says playing a celebrity on "The Morning Show" was "cathartic" as it mirrored her own experiences in Hollywood.

In an interview with The Los Angeles Times, the actress opened up about starring as network morning anchor Alex Levy in the Apple TV+ series, which she said felt like "20 years of therapy." Portraying a female figure like Alex hit home for Aniston in a meaningful way, as her character is forced to assert herself and maintain her public image in a male-dominated industry.

"Cathartic, yes, and also interesting for me to look at how I always have tried to normalize being fine and 'everything's great, you know, this is all normal,' and then there are moments when you have your private breakdown or your 'Calgon, take me away' moments," said Aniston. "To actually look at it from an actor brain observing it and acknowledging it, I had to look at it as opposed to pretending it doesn't exist."

"That show was 20 years of therapy wrapped into 10 episodes," she added. "There were times when I would read a scene and feel like a whole manhole cover was taken off my back."

The "Friends" star then brought up a scene, in the second episode of the series, in which her character has a breakdown in a limo on the way to a red carpet event, revealing that she's had similar experiences, just not to that extent.

"There have been moments --- not to that level of hysteria -- but moments of 'I don't want to f--king go here,' 'I don't want to walk out onto the carpet,' 'I don't want to be seen,' 'I don't want to be looked at and everyone’s going to be talking about me and judging me' ... that's real," Aniston said. "I just loved being able to walk into it and lean into it and not be ashamed of it.”

Aniston was recently nominated for her first Emmy award in a drama category. The star is up for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for "The Morning Show" alongside Zendaya ("Euphoria,) Olivia Colman ("The Crown,) Jodie Comer ("Killing Eve,") Laura Linney ("Ozark,") and Sandra Oh ("Killing Eve").

As Rachel Green on "Friends," which aired from 1994 to 2004, Aniston received five Emmy nominations, winning in 2002.

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