Jason Alexander Claims That He Doesn’t Know Jerry Seinfeld ‘All That Well’
While the Seinfeld gang clearly had a deep disdain for humanity in general, at least Jerry, George, Elaine and Kramer all seemed to like — and possibly even love — one another. But behind the scenes, the core cast wasn’t quite as tight as you might have thought.
Jason Alexander recently guested on Tom Papa’s Breaking Bread podcast, and naturally they discussed his work with their mutual friend, and Papa’s former Marriage Ref boss, Jerry Seinfeld.
When asked about making the show with Jerry, Alexander made a borderline shocking revelation. “Here's the truth, it is kind of a weird truth,” he told Papa. “The only one of the core four I really got to know over the nine years was Julia (Louis-Dreyfus).”
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According to Alexander, he became more aware of just how little he knew about Michael Richards after reading his recent memoir. “I got in touch with him, and I said, ‘I love the book. Here's what's sad: I don't think I met this guy. You were doing stuff I was not even aware of.’ Because his process was so isolated in some ways. And I didn't want to interfere with that process,” Alexander noted.
As for Seinfeld, they had a good time during the shoots, which is clearly evident in the show’s many blooper reels.
But Seinfeld wasn’t just acting, he was working on other aspects of the show and didn’t open up to his castmates at all. “He came down, and we had fun, and we enjoyed each other and it was a lot of laughs — and I know some things about what was going on in his life. But I wasn't a confidant,” the actor stressed. “He’s down, he’s rehearsing with us, and then he’s in the editing room, or he’s in the casting office, or he’s writing or he’s doing something else.”
“So I didn’t hang out with Jerry,” Alexander continued. “And as a result, I don’t really know him all that well.”
He did make it clear that if any of his fellow Seinfeld cast members needed any help he would be there for them “in a second,” but clarified that they had a “work friendship” not a “social friendship.” In fact, they’re so ill-acquainted that, were Seinfeld to invite Alexander out for a meal, his reaction would be: “Okay… let’s see if we can do this.”
Alexander does seem to be acutely aware of the fact that people may not like to hear that one of pop culture’s most famous friendships is so wildly different off-screen. “It’s such a strange reality for us,” he admitted.
Come to think of it, even Alexander’s episode of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee found him and Seinfeld interacting as their sitcom characters.
