Fran Drescher says she has a ‘rotation’ of friends with benefits

Romance, the Fran Drescher way, is decidedly laissez-faire apparently.

The 67-year-old actor of “The Nanny” spoke candidly to Page Six about her personal life while attending a recent screening of “The Friend.” She shared that she maintains a casual roster of friends with benefits.

“I have a little rotation,” she told the outlet. As Page Six reported, its on-site interviewer audibly “gasped” at her use of the word “rotation,” prompting Drescher to laugh.

“I’m Fran Drescher,” the SAG-AFTRA president reportedly replied. “What do you think?!”

Drescher explained that her “very close” bond with her ex-husband, Peter Marc Jacobson, means the most she can give anyone else is a casual thing.

Jacobson was an executive producer on “The Nanny.” The former couple were married from 1978 to 1999. Jacobson came out as gay after their divorce.

In a 2022 interview with E! News, she spoke about dating after her divorce, describing herself as “like the animal let out of the zoo.” 

She didn’t hold back, opening up about the emotional roller coaster of dating.

“I’ve been on dates with guys who we got into a fight about how we would raise this imaginary kid that we were never gonna have because we clearly were completely different people who would have different styles of parenting,” Drescher recalled.

She also spoke about online dating and how not all swipes are right.

“I tried one app once and I found that none of the guys seemed to be honest about how they presented themselves,” she said. “They weren’t as successful as their profile suggested, some of them smoked.”

In her conversation with Page Six, Drescher said that while she prefers to keep her dating life light, she’s been navigating heavier challenges. For one, the Broadway musical for “The Nanny” is on pause. She’s also still reeling from the fallout of the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike, the destructive Palisades fires that occurred in January of this year, and more.

“We’re going to resurrect (the musical) but between the (actors) strike, my dad passing away and now the Palisades fires, which impacted my house… there’s only so much I can do,” she said, noting that to create work a person needs “to be in the right frame of mind.”

For her, staying grounded has meant leaning on friends she can rely on.

“I don’t try to hide it,” she said. “I’m very gentle with myself. I share what I’m going through, and I keep it very small with people that I feel very safe with, and over time, it gets better.”