Steven Weber Says Dinner Club with Laurence Fishburne, Eric McCormack and More Fellow Actors Is a ‘Real Lifeline’ (Exclusive)

Steven Weber is thankful to have his fellow ’90s stars by his side after all these years.

The Wings The alum, 62, opened up to PEOPLE at the Project Angel Food Angel Awards on Saturday about how his friendships with fellow actors have been a “real lifesaver” for him.

At an event held at Project Angel Food headquarters in Los Angeles, Weber said he is “part of this informal group called CADS, the Character Actor Dining Society.”

Steven Weber attends the 2023 Project Angel Food Awards on September 23 in Los Angeles.

Steve Granitz/FilmMagic

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Besides Weber, 12 members include Wings costar Tim Daly, Eric McCormack, Laurence Fishburne, Noah Wyle, Alfred Molina, LeVar Burton, Richard Kind, Spencer Garrett, Kevin Pollak, Rob Morrow and “a bunch more”.

For the past few years, CADS has met once a month for a dinner, where “we all look at each other and say, ‘We’re still here,’” says Weber.

They also have a group message where they talk every day. “It was a real lifeline and it was very difficult,” he added.

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The ’90s television star is especially grateful to have the friendship of her fellow CADS members amid the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes.

He explained: “There’s so much about community in theater and the industry and here in Los Angeles, it’s very easy to become isolated. You’re in your car, you’re in your head. You are in the mirror. But the whole idea of ​​being with contemporaries who have gone through similar challenges over the years was fantastic. It was great.”

It turns out that Weber has McCormack to thank, as well Will & Grace alum, 60, is “a key founder of that group.”

“In fact, when he performed on Broadway, a whole group of us CADS went out to greet him and support him,” Weber recalled.

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Eric McCormack and Steven Weber.

Christopher Polk/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty

Weber — who replaced McCormack as co-host of the Project Angel Food Angel Awards while currently starring in the Broadway production hut — told PEOPLE that their relationship “means the world” to him.

“He’s a real friend. We’re very honest with each other and have been from the beginning,” he said.

Reflecting on all of his friendships, Weber shared with PEOPLE, “I finally have in my life at this age, a group of friends who have all been through wars, they’ve all been through all these personal things and professional things, and it’s easy to get isolated in this business . It’s easy to just stand there and look in the mirror and watch yourself fail and go crazy with vanity, neurosis and narcissism.”

“But my group of friends is full of gratitude. We pinch each other that we’re still here,” he continued. “We are incredibly lucky and we know it. And we support each other. We help each other and are honest with each other and there is no competition. AND [McCormack] embodies that.”

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