Nancy McKeon executives for the title role in the TV sitcom adaptation of the 1988 film "Working Girl"; the role, played by Melanie Griffith in the movie, instead went to then unknown Sandra Bullock for the TV series. In 1994, both McKeon and Courteney Cox auditioned for the role of Monica Geller on "Friends." The role went to the latter. When asked in interviews about the auditions, McKeon said, "I have no hard feelings. The role went to the right person. Courteney was brilliant. Now, I can't see anybody playing the role, not even myself." In 1995, she starred in her own
Monica Geller frequently sporting jeans, overalls, and cargo shorts. With a wardrobe comprised almost equally of dresses and pants, Monica's fashion sense, much like Rachel and Phoebe's, "was a little bit normcore, a little bit corporate-casual." Four months before its premiere, "Friends" failed NBC's confidential research report, which cited the unlikeability of its six main characters as a possible factor. Although the report acknowledged Monica as the only character with whom test audiences identified somewhat positively, NBC admitted that reception towards the character was "well below desirable levels for a lead" nonetheless. In retrospect, "The New Republic's" Andrew Harrison believes that although