Liked him because I hated his Band of Brothers character
I started to like David Schwimmer when I realized he possessed a range and depth of acting expertise, not limited to sitcoms.
If you look at Schwimmer closely enough, he is suited to playing a bad guy and that's what his character was on BAND OF BROTHERS (2001), as First Lieutenant Herbert Sobel, commander of the paratroop training class, 101st Airborne Division. Out in the total real world working environment of the U.S. Army, a mere first lieutenant is a nobody with next to zilch authority but lots of heavy responsibility. But in the closed, restricted, training environment of the U.S. Army, isolated from the rest of the regular army, 1LT Sobel possesses dictatorial powers over his training charges, which he uses to the extreme. 1LT Sobel is a dedicated, committed jerk. Some officers in the U.S. Army, past and present and no doubt future, believe that being a complete anal, insensitive dictatorial jerk-off is the most efficient leadership style. He doesn't accept or believe that there should be a bond of mutual respect between an officer and his men. All he believes is that he give orders and they obey. Yet he doesn't realize that his leadership and personality style degrades unit morale, not build it. Still, the paratrooper trainees learn their lessons at jump school and go on to become honored warriors in the WWII European theater.
During the final episode of BoB, Sobel finally makes his way to Europe, just as hostilities are ending. He reached the rank of captain but as the war is ending, career advancement will greatly slow down for everyone. He walks past a long path lined with his former paratrooper trainees, now battle-hardened veterans, those who survived. But there is no vocal recognition between Sobel and the paratroopers. The paratroopers silently glare at Sobel with a mixture of disdain, disgust, and even hate.
This was excellent acting by Schwimmer. I liked him for it. Last year he proved it again in the role of the late OJ Simpson lawyer, Robert Khardashian. Schwimmer did an excellent acting job, despite the fact that the real-life Khardashian stood only 5'7" to Schwimmer's 6'1". Well, that's just a minor detail