From her role on the daytime soap, “As The World Turns,” to when she co-starred in “Scream” – Access’ Maria Menounos met up with Courteney Cox in Hawaii where she was filming the season finale of “Cougar Town” to chat about her amazing career over the years.
Category: Press
Access Spotlight: Courteney Cox’s Career Over The Years
Friday, Mar 18, 2011
Courteney Cox: ‘Exiting social life, entering isolation’
Tuesday, Mar 15, 2011
Incompatibility was one problem with her marriage to David Arquette, Courteney Cox says in the April issue of Harper’s Bazaar, out March 29.
“The thing is, when you get older, it’s more about compatibility than it is about love,” she says. “I think it’s more about needing just a kind of peace and stillness. I’m kind of all over the place, and I need grounding. I want to be calm. I want to change a lot. I want to live not outside but inside. It’s nothing with David; it’s just what I’m searching for.”
Cox says she isn’t mad at Arquette for being so chatty about their breakup. “He was dealing with things the best way he could.” She pauses. “I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I don’t think he’ll be doing more Howard Stern any time soon. He’s not out to harm. But I’m his biggest protector. I can’t help it.”
Their seven-year age gap—Courteney is 46 to David’s 39—doesn’t register to her as the crux of their issues. “Most guys aren’t that mature, are they? They just don’t think the way we think.”
On rumors of an affair with her Cougar Town co-star Brian Van Holt?
She flatly denies: “He’s a really good friend of mine, so I don’t care,” says Cox. “It just doesn’t matter. He’s a great guy, and he’s definitely been a part of my support system.”
The former Friends star also says she can’t see herself diving into the dating pool any time soon.
“I have no desire right now,” she admits. “I’m not saying never. It just seems weird. I don’t even know how that would happen or how you meet people. I really don’t like to go out. I’m not great at small talk. I like to go to dinner with people. I don’t like to go to parties. There’s a sign on my forehead: EXITING SOCIAL LIFE, ENTERING INTO ISOLATION.”
‘Cougar Town’ acting its age
Wednesday, Feb 23, 2011
With Courteney Cox’s “Cougar Town” settling into its second season, the sitcom has gotten away from its attention-grabbing title — especially now that Cox’s character, Jules, is settling down with her neighbor and boyfriend, Grayson (Josh Hopkins). Cox spoke with Metro about the changes — and cases of wine — the show is going through.
What did you think of your character finding a long-term relationship so soon?
I think it’s just a new approach. It’s a functioning relationship, but with two kind of really non-functioning people in some ways. I mean, Grayson doesn’t really know how to have a relationship.
When did wine become such a central part of the show?
You know, I do like wine, there’s no question, and [creator] Bill [Lawrence] does like to take things from our personal lives and put them in the story, but he exaggerates. So yes, I like wine and yes, I might fill a glass more than other people. And it’s not that the wine is real — although sometimes it is. You know, late in the day sometimes.
Will we see any other “Friends” on the show?
I don’t know. I mean, Matthew’s got his own show. Matt LeBlanc has got his own show. Lisa and Jennifer have already done it. And Schwimmer is probably doing so many things — probably directing — and just got married. I don’t know. I don’t think so.
Matthew Perry Talks Cougar Town
Wednesday, Feb 9, 2011
Matthew Perry made a short mention of Cougar Town/Courteney in a recent interview
Will we see you on Cougar Town ever?
MP: I sort of subscribe to that thing where I want a little bit of time to establish my character in this. I love the show, I think Courtney obviously is hilarious and a really good friend of mine. I just want there to be a little more distance before we do that. I didn’t think that people would be able to watch it and not see Chandler and Monica. But I think if my show is lucky enough, to go on playing with different people, maybe.
Courteney Cox understands criticism of Cougar Town
Tuesday, Feb 8, 2011
COURTENEY Cox has read the scathing criticism of her first comedy vehicle since “Friends” and yes, she understands it.
But Cox insists Cougar Town is no longer the show the haters called shrill, desperate and hysterical.
Heck, Channel 7 boss David Leckie even called it “shit”.
But, like a bad marriage, Cox and her castmates are finding it hard to break free of those early critiques.
For those living in a pop culture-free orbit, the title was meant to play on the contemporary term for an older single woman who prefers to date younger men.
Playing divorced real estate agent Jules Cobb, Cox was meant to strike a blow for female empowerment.
Instead, after a mauling by the critics and social commentators, the term turned predatory.
“Before it was like, ‘I don’t want to watch Cougar Town and Courteney Cox getting on to a younger guy every week’ … oh, please,” Cox says.
“It’s not what the show was even then, but it did have a negative connotation. Now we just don’t know how to get out of that title, we don’t know what to do with it. It’s terrible, so we just decided to make fun of it each week.”
The self-effacing gag comes in the opening titles, slugged variously with a reference to the criticism, for example “(the badly titled) Cougar Town” or “It’s OK to watch a show called Cougar Town“.
Cox is frank about the attacks, but grateful they weren’t too personal.
“I was kind of lucky early on and didn’t get pummelled too bad,” she says.
“They weren’t really attacks on me. If it had been attacks on me, that’s when I go dark, deep.”
For her it was mostly about the frenetic pace of the program – a signature of executive producer Bill Lawrence, of Scrubs fame.
“I’ve got to say, when I first saw the pilot … it seemed to go so fast. I was used to Friends pace, but this was just like zing, zing, zing, zing. And I just sat there and said, “Oh shit, this is really different than what I thought”,” Cox says.
“Even though I liked it, I thought, “This is crazy”.”
A shift in that rhythm was timed with Jules finding a stable partner in neighbour Grayson (Josh Hopkins), which has seen the on-screen chaos calm a little and a third season given the green light.
“Even though it’s still fast-paced, I think we’ve slowed down. I think we all learn from our mistakes and the critics seem to be liking it more,” she says.
Just don’t expect Cox to play the rock, a la Monica on Friends.
“I just want to continue to have her be kooky, as opposed to stable. Jules may be the centre of the show, but she’s just as kooky as her family.”
