Courteney Cox rose to fame playing type-A personality and chef Monica Geller on the
pop culture phenomenon Friends.
When the iconic sitcom went off the air in 2004, she seemed poised to achieve even greater
fame on the big screen or on TV, but her career hasn't flourished as much as fans might've
expected.
So, why won't Hollywood cast Cox anymore?
Let's take a look at some of the reasons her career hasn't been as hot as anticipated lately.
Losing the part
Cox nearly kicked off her post-Friends career with another starring role on a mega-hit series.
The actress was in the running to play Susan Meyer in ABC's prime time soap opera Desperate
Housewives.
In fact, she was reportedly producer Marc Cherry's first choice for the part, but she
had to pass on it because she was pregnant with her daughter Coco at the time.
As a result, the role went to Teri Hatcher, and Cox missed out on the next big thing on
the small screen.
"Aw, what are the CHANCES!?"
Instead, Cox's first major post-Friends role was in 2006's ill-fated comedy Zoom.
"Let's get this party started!"
The movie was a commercial flop, grossing only $12.5 million worldwide against its $75
million budget, and was also panned by critics, scoring a dismal 3 percent on Rotten Tomatoes.
She then made her highly-anticipated return to the small screen in 2007 as Lucy Spiller,
an unsympathetic tabloid editor, in Dirt.
But the intense FX dramedy struggled to find its footing—and an audience—during the
uncertainty of the writers' strike going on at the time.
The show was met with a lukewarm critical reception, and its ratings steadily dwindled.
With production halting mid-second-season due to the strike, the network unceremoniously
canceled the series in 2008.
And Cox's next series would nearly suffer a similar fate.
A rocky new start
After Dirt was canned, Cox focused on developing Cougar Town, a quirky comedy which featured
her chugging wine with her pals in a small town that seems to revolve around her.
The show was undoubtedly her biggest post-Friends success and actually earned her first and
only Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress.
But just like her previous efforts to reclaim her spot on the TV throne, the show struggled
to find an audience throughout its entire six-season run.
The show almost always seemed on the verge of cancellation, suffering from difficult
time slots, fizzling ratings, and mixed reviews.
Even an attempt to revitalize the show with a new home at TBS in 2012 failed to bring
any new energy to the show, and it was ultimately shuttered in 2015 without much fanfare.
Behind the lens
After Friends, Cox began amassing a body of work behind the lens as well, with mixed results.
She served as a producer on several shows, including Dirt and Cougar Town as well as
Daisy Does America and Celebrity Name Game.
She also tried her hand at directing, helming several episodes of Cougar Town before making
her feature-length directorial debut in 2014.
The film, titled Just Before I Go, was billed as a dramedy but failed to impress critics
or audiences.
Reviewers slammed it as filled with crass jokes and uneven attempts at emotional resonance,
while audiences never showed up to see it.
To her credit, Cox refused to let naysayers keep her down, telling the Wrap:
"I'm never more creatively fulfilled than when I'm directing.
I love immersing myself in every aspect."
But if her inaugural movie effort was any indication, she might want to be more choosey
with her future projects.
Back to natural
Courtney Cox was as fresh-faced as they come when she got her big break on Friends, but
in the years that followed, her face started to look remarkably different on-camera.
In 2016, the actress came clean about her prior use of Botox, facial fillers, and laser
treatments, and admitted that the procedures made her look "fake."
"I think there's a pressure to maintain [your looks], not just because of fame, but just,
you know, being a woman in this business …"
"Sometimes you find yourself trying and you look at a picture of yourself and you go 'ooh,
God.'"
She ultimately decided to let her fillers dissolve, allowing her face to return to its
natural state and restoring her confidence.
Cox certainly isn't the only actress who's dealt with the pressures of trying to find
the fountain of youth in Hollywood, but if her interventions rendered her unrecognizable,
it very well could have hindered her career progress at the time.
"People are… can be pretty mean."
Personal projects
In addition to raising her daughter and staging impromptu Friends reunions, Cox has also been
devoting much of her time to changing the world.
The actress is a supporter of a number of charities, but the cause closest to her heart
is the fight against ALS.
Ever since her friend, publicist Nanci Ryder, was diagnosed in 2014, the actress has done
her part to raise awareness about the disease.
Cox has also worked closely with OmniPeace, which builds music schools in Rwanda to help
empower children who are living in poverty, and the Dignity Campaign, which aids mothers
in prison.
Meanwhile, she's taken her personal passions to the professional realm as well, having
recently directed the music video for Joel Taylor's "Two Sides" and beginning work on
a new documentary series about the pregnancy process.
Perhaps one of these new adventures, which may be nearer and dearer to her heart, will
mark the start of a new career revival for Courteney Cox.
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