Here is how James Michael Tyler bagged the role of Gunther in Friends

After battling cancer for three years, James Michael Tyler died on Sunday. The actor bagged the role of Gunther on Friends because he knew how to operate an espresso machine.

Friends actor James Michael Tyler died at the age of 59 at his Los Angeles home on Sunday, after battling prostate cancer for three years. James had once revealed how he landed the role of Gunther on the show.

In an old interview with Insider, James had revealed that he got the role simply because he knew how to use a coffee machine. The actor, who had a Masters in Fine Arts, had opened up about his character in the show and said, “You know, I honestly always thought my Masters in Fine Arts (MFA) would get me further in the acting world than knowing how to work an espresso machine! That was a happy accident and I’m very, very grateful to have had that skill.”

In the same interview, James had also revealed that his hair colour which Rachel Greene (played by Jennifer Aniston) described as “brighter than the sun” was a happy accident. He had it dyed the day before he joined Friends. “I have a friend who wanted to practise on my head because they wanted to be a stylist. So I offered what hair I had left to turn white. That was a happy coincidence!” he had said.

On Monday, James’ family said in a statement: ‘The world knew him as Gunther (the seventh Friend), from the hit series Friends, but Michael’s loved ones knew him as an actor, musician, cancer-awareness advocate, and loving husband. Michael loved live music, cheering on Clemson Tigers, and would often find himself in fun and unplanned adventures. If you met him once you made a friend for life.”

James was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2018 but didn’t publicly reveal his battle with the disease until earlier this year. Apart from Friends, he had also starred in shows including Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Modern Music, Episodes, Just Shoot Me! and Scrubs.