David Schwimmer: 'My plan is to demonstrate that we're good neighbors'

[Photo from last August via EVG reader Marc]

East Village resident David Schwimmer is directing "Sex With Strangers," a two-character production now underway at the Second Stage Theatre.

He discussed the play and his return to his theater roots in a Wall Street Journal article yesterday. (Subscription required.)

Writer Lizzie Simon doesn't let him off without bringing up his newish home on East Sixth Street. It's also the first time that Schwimmer has discussed his move to this neighborhood in the media, as far as we can recall.

As it turns out, Second Stage isn't the only place in New York where Mr. Schwimmer feels pressure to prove himself. He bought and in 2011 demolished a historic townhouse in the East Village, replacing it with a six-story mansion, angering preservationists. "Ross is not cool" was spray-painted on a construction board outside his home, photos of which went viral.

"I never responded. I haven't talked about it," Mr. Schwimmer said. "My plan is to demonstrate that we're good neighbors."

This next portion of the article did not appear in the print version of the Journal.

A recent crime-fighting assist might have aided his case. In May, security footage that he shared with detectives helped them catch the assailant in a stabbing that happened on his street. "I had it on three different cameras," Mr. Schwimmer said.

The East Village was the New York neighborhood that most closely resembled where his wife, Zoe Buckman, was raised in east London. "She fell in love with it when we were walking around," he said. "It's incredibly diverse economically, racially, culturally. We really hope that in time we'll just be accepted totally by everyone."

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: David Schwimmer's surveillance footage helps NYPD in male prostitute stabbing