Jennifer Aniston in 1999 was just starting to explode into the world as the famous celebrity she is known as today. At the time, Friends, her vehicle to stardom, was still in on the air and by the end of the year she already had a few popular films to her name. In 1999, Jennifer Aniston had begun to cross the line from being a working actor into being a Hollywood icon. It was this year when Aniston did something that many of her fans have forgotten about – she appeared in an early episode of Comedy Central’s South Park.
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South Park creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker speak highly of the season three episode where Aniston worked with them. You can listen to them praise the episode and her performance in the season three DVD commentary. Aniston appeared in an episode titled “Rainforest Shmainforest.” She played Miss Stevens, a choir instructor for a self-righteous children’s environmental activist group called “Getting Gay With Kids” whose goal is to save the rainforrest. Miss Stevens and the kids all change their tune (pun intended) after they all get lost in the rainforest and everything in it tries to kill them. How did someone who became one of the most popular actresses of our time end up as a guest star on a show about four foul mouthed fourth graders from Colorado?
6 Jennifer Aniston Was An Early Fan
South Park, especially it’s earliest seasons, was a cultural sensation and it quickly became one of Comedy Central’s most popular and profitable shows. At the time, Aniston was still dating actor Brad Pitt, and allegedly Pitt was a fan of South Park and when he introduced Aniston to the show she quickly became a fan. Aniston’s people reached out to Parker and Stone and said she wanted to be a part of the show.
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5 Aniston Had Never Voice Acted Before
Although Aniston had already done a few films by this time, like Leprechaun, Mike Judge’s Office Space, and RockStar with Mark Walhberg, her acting resume only listed live-action roles. Aniston had no experience doing voice over work prior to this episode, and she required some intentional direction. Fortunately, Matt and Trey were willing to help.
4 'Friends' Was Still On The Air
Friends was already riding high as the highest rated show on NBC at the time and Aniston had already made the “Rachel” haircut a very popular style of the 90s. Plus, her relationship with Brad Pitt was a favorite topic for the tabloids at the time. The point is, although she was still building up her career, Aniston was already fast-becoming a cultural sensation and with her name on an episode of South Park the show went from being the immature gag show that it had a reputation for being and was turned into a legitimate program that had the attention of Hollywood bigwigs like Pitt and Aniston. In a way, her appearance on the show solidified the future of South Park as a Comedy Central institution.
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3 Jennifer Aniston Was One Of Their First, And Few, Guest Stars
South Park rarely has celebrity guest stars, with very few exceptions. There could be many explanations for that, one being that Parker and Stone operate on a very intense and tight production schedule, and most episodes are made within a week's time, something that is almost unheard of in animation. A tight production schedule like that makes it difficult to book outside talent. However this evidently did not stall or slow down Aniston from her willingness to contribute. Some other guest stars from early episodes include Elton John, George Clooney, and Jay Leno as Cartman’s cat, Mr. Kitty.
2 Trey Parker Got Real Directing Practice With Aniston
Parker already had some directing experience as he had already directed several episodes and two films (Cannibal the Musical and BASEketBall) by the time Aniston came to the show. But it was when he worked with Aniston that he needed to put on his director's cap more so than any other episode. Aniston, as already mentioned, was a novice voice actress and according to her own words she was incredibly anxious and nervous coming into the production. However, Parker was understanding of her nerves and directed her patiently and helped her work through the performance.
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1 How It All Turned Out
We all know how the story ends. Aniston went on to a lucrative Hollywood career. Friends lasted until 2004 and eventually the cast was making $1 million an episode. South Park, now in its 23rd season, is one of the longest running adult cartoons in show business along with The Simpsons and Family Guy. Aniston, Parker, and Stone are all multimillionaires. Details and hot takes about the episode are all over the internet, especially on South Park fan wikis. Considering how long it has been and that all parties involved are now rich and famous, maybe it is time for Aniston to work with Parker and Stone again? That’s pure conjecture, but it's very likely that it would delight both Aniston and South Park fans to see her work with the raunchy show runners once again.
Next: Matt Leblanc's Biggest Roles Since 'Friends' Ended
