Actor Courtney Cox pays tribute to late director Jimmy Burrows, calls him "egoless"

The actress shared the note on her Instagram handle, reminiscing about behind-the-scenes anecdotes from the sets of Friends during the tenure of director Jimmy Burrows.

Courtney Cox wrote, "Jimmy B called me Cox-N-Hammer. I have no idea why or what it means, but I just went with it 'cause he was Jimmy Burrows. He always referred to us as "the kids"... he took the cast under his wing and taught us everything we needed to know -- whether through his direction, or telling us how things in our lives were gonna unfold -- never sugar-coating anything and he was always right."

She also praised the selfless behaviour of the director, describing him as an "egoless" filmmaker despite the fame.

Courtney Cox wrote, "I would beg him to make more time to direct us, but so did all of his other shows, because everything was better when he was around. You felt safe and confident and man, what a blast we had! I'm not sure how someone with that much talent, wisdom, and adoration could be so egoless. Making anything the best it could be was all that mattered to Jimmy... well, that and his wonderful kids and his beautiful wife, Debbie. I so loved watching them fall in love."

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Earlier, Jennifer Aniston also penned a heartwarming note for James Burrows, describing the filmmaker as a "father figure" in her life.

"Papa Burrows. The hardest thing about writing this is that you spent a lifetime making people feel loved, and now it feels impossible to put all of that love into a few paragraphs," Aniston wrote on Instagram on Sunday (local time).

She continued, "He called us his 'kids' -- 'Where are the kids?''Let's see if the kids can make the joke work.' No pressure. His own incredible children were generous enough to share him with all of us who were lucky enough to experience his unicorn presence. He was a father figure to me. He always checked in on me. He worried about me, celebrated me, taught me, guided me, and held me through the hardest times and the best of times. He spoiled us rotten."

The actress shared her learnings from the late director, writing, "Most of all, he taught us--the kids--how important it is to love and respect one another. To take care of each other. To have each other's backs and support each other, no matter what. And we did just that. I miss your voice. I miss your laugh. I miss your brilliance. Wherever you are, I hope someone is asking, "Where are the kids?"

Burrows passed away on Friday, with his family confirming the news in a statement to People magazine.

"We celebrate the extraordinary life and enduring legacy of James 'Jimmy' Burrows, who passed away peacefully today, surrounded by his loving family. For more than five decades, Burrows was one of the most influential and beloved directors in television history. As a legendary director, mentor, and creative force, he helped shape generations of comedy and brought immeasurable joy to audiences around the world," the family said in a statement.

According to the outlet, Burrows is often credited as the father of the modern sitcom. Along with his stint on 'Friends,' he also co-created the iconic '80s bar comedy 'Cheers,' directed 75 episodes of 'Taxi' and helmed every episode of 'Will & Grace' from 1998 to 2020.

Among his dozens of other TV directing credits are 'The Bob Newhart Show', 'Rhoda', 'The Betty White Show', 'Laverne & Shirley', 'Lou Grant', 'The Tony Randall Show', 'The Associates', 'The Stockard Channing Show', 'The Hogan Family', 'Night Court', 'Dear John', 'Ladies Man', 'Wings', 'Frasier', 'NewsRadio', 'Third Rock from the Sun', 'Pearl', 'Dharma & Greg', 'Caroline in the City', 'George & Leo', 'The Class', 'Courting Alex', 'Back to You', 'Two and a Half Men', 'The Big Bang Theory', 'Hank', 'Up All Night', 'Better with You', '2 Broke Girls', 'Partners', 'Mike & Molly' and 'The Millers'. (ANI)