Tate Donovan Says He Was Wowed by How Handsome He Was on an Episode of Friends He Caught on TV Recently (Exclusive)

Tate Donovan got a flashback of his younger self via an episode of Friends recently.

The actor, 61, told PEOPLE all about the experience at the Oct. 24 premiere of Cirque du Soleil’s Kooza at the Santa Monica Pier in Santa Monica, California.

“I don’t really watch Friends,” Donovan admitted, “but recently, I was in a hotel room and it came on and, oh my God, there was Joshua.”

Donovan joined the cast of the beloved sitcom as a recurring character in early 1998, during the show’s fourth season. He played wealthy Bloomingdale’s customer Joshua Burgin, who goes on to woo Jennifer Aniston’s Rachel. Funnily enough, Donovan’s on-screen romance with Aniston’s character aired after the two actors had already ended their real-life relationship.

“I was like, ‘Wow, I was really handsome at one point in my life,’ ” Donovan said of catching his Friends character on TV. “I really was.”

Despite describing his time on the hit show as “a good memory,” Donovan isn’t holding his breath for a Friends revival.

“Well, I don’t think Friends could be rebooted,” he said.

A Friends reboot does seem extremely unlikely following Matthew Perry’s tragic death last year. But Donovan seemed less certain about a second life for early-2000s drama The O.C., in which he played Mischa Barton’s troubled dad, Jimmy Cooper.

While costars Rachel Bilson and Melinda Clarke have said they would be “totally down” for a revival of the series, Donovan told PEOPLE he “hasn’t heard anything” about a potential reboot.

“But I would do it,” he added.

Donovan noted that he’s stayed in touch with some of his fellow cast members, joining Bilson and Clarke on several episodes of their podcast Welcome to the O.C., Bitches!

“And yeah, [series creator] Josh Schwartz, I’ve worked with him a couple times, directing some of his shows,” he said. “Those guys are great.”

He also recalled a memorable 2022 mini O.C. reunion with Barton and Clarke, who played his daughter and wife, respectively, on the series. “We had a great little reunion, the Cooper family reunion one time,” he said. “That was really fun.”