Lisa Kudrow and Michel Stern’s 26-Year Union Has a Perfectly Imperfect Love Story

Lisa Kudrow has been putting a smile on our faces since the airing of the first episode of Friends. And even though we were a bit sad about her love life in the show, we couldn’t imagine how fulfilled and joyful she was with her off-screen romance. Lisa’s marriage is real proof that fate has a weird way of putting people together, especially your significant other.

We at Bright Side would like to tell you about the union of Lisa Kudrow and her husband, Michel. So keep scrolling to get a glimpse of the romantic relationship of one of the happiest couples in Hollywood.

When one door closes, another door always opens.

Lisa Kudrow was born in California. Unlike the character she played in the hit sitcom, Lisa is quite smart: she studied biology and worked with her father — a world-renowned headache specialist — for 8 years.

Her brother’s childhood friend convinced her to give acting a shot, and, decades later, after being fired from the set of a TV show and rejected for roles she auditioned for, she became one of Hollywood’s biggest names. Her dedication, hope, and talent got her the audition of a lifetime, and the rest is history.

It was love at first sight — but she kept it cool.

It was in the 1980s when Lisa first saw Michel. The handsome French advertising executive was dating her French roommate at the time. Lisa had fallen for his charm but kept it to herself, admiring him whenever he came around to meet his then-girlfriend.

Lisa was afraid that people would be able to tell she liked him. She used to get nervous and act strange, to the point that she’d say hi back to him in a rush and leave the room whenever he came to pick up her roommate. She made quite an impression on him, as he thought she was a freak. However, her politeness took over these situations, and she’d do her best to stay calm around him.

They found each other and never let go.

Kudrow’s roommate and Michel called it quits after some time, and Lisa stumbled upon her crush at a birthday party 6 years later. They were still friends then but turned their friendship into a romance that has been shining ever since. She said, “I thought that that’s not nice to flirt. But the minute I saw him, I went, ’Well, that’s it, there he is.’”

They built a beautiful family.

The couple tied the knot on May 27, 1995, in Malibu, California. The ceremony was held privately, and we don’t have much information about the details. What we do know, though, is that it must’ve been the best day of their lives.

Their son, Julian Murray, was born 3 years later. He was also in Friends while he was in his mother’s belly, since Lisa was pregnant in the fourth season of the show. As a result of her pregnancy, the writers made Phoebe a surrogate mother to brother Frank and his wife Alice in the series.

Commitment is what made it work.

We have to admit that falling in love and getting married is easy, but committing to your partner and working on difficulties is what makes marriages work. Lisa seemed to know the recipe from the beginning because, according to her, you don’t promise to love someone forever, but you promise to work on whatever problems come up. The real deal is to commit to making the marriage work because, after you have a history, it becomes a bond, not a simple crush.

The actress also shared in an interview that independence is key to a great marriage. She advised couples to stick to their independence, as she did with her husband. They respect each other’s individuality, they have their own goals and achievements, but they know they’re on the same team.

Their marriage of 26 years has surely seen ups and downs, but their commitment to each other made it work. The iconic TV star and her husband are the kind of people you’d actually want advice from on your own friendships, love, and life in general.

Bonus: Lisa’s story in Friends also ended happily at the end of the show.

Phoebe Buffay (Lisa) had an interesting love life. Her first marriage was to a Canadian ice skater who needed a green card. Then she had a brief affair in Las Vegas that turned into a quick out-of-the-blue marriage, which according to Phoebe, doesn’t count because “if you get married in Vegas, you’re only married in Vegas.”

The blond beauty finally found love when she married Mike. We were able to see the affection and respect they had for each other and their shared desire to have kids. On the other hand, Lisa’s fate was not far from her character’s. Although the charming actress didn’t get married 3 times, she surely found her soulmate and started her own family.

Do you have a marriage success story of your own that you’d like to share? We’d love to hear about it!