Matt LeBlanc accepted Episodes role to escape ‘horse poop’

OHMYGOSSIP — Former ‘Friends’ star Matt LeBlanc says he decided to accept a role in ‘Episodes’ after almost a five-year break from acting to escape the “horse poop” on his ranch.

The 47-year-old actor had a near five-year career break after his sitcom ‘Joey’ was cancelled in 2006 and spent his time caring for his animals on his acres of land.

LeBlanc admits he was only tempted to end his self-imposed hiatus by the prospect of working with ‘Friends’ co-creator David Crane again and his partner Jeffrey Klarik on ‘Episodes’, in which he plays a fictionalised version of himself.

When asked what tempted him to star in ‘Episodes’, he quipped: “Anything to get away from shovelling that horse poop!”

He then added on ‘This Morning’: “The show’s producers – I’m such a fan of their writing – they wrote ‘Friends’ and I had a great experience with them, and they called me out of the blue pretty much saying they have an idea, and I said ‘I’m in’… and they pitched the entire first series with no notes, blow by blow off the top of their head, I was blown away!”

LeBlanc stars in ‘Episodes’ with Stephen Mangan and Tamsin Greig and has received critical acclaim for his performances in the series.

Although LeBlanc loves animals and cares for many creatures on his ranch, he revealed last week one critter he hates is the badger.

He said: “Badgers are just mean. They are very territorial and aggressive with their claws, teeth and tough hides.”