I think Julie was the first girlfriend of Ross’ that we got to see on screen on the sitcom of Friends. She was a decent minor character.

She was (on paper) a very good fit for Ross. They were both paleontologists and seemed to find the other attractive. But Julie entered the scene as soon as Rachel wanted to date Ross. And boy, was she jealous and tried hard to sabotage their relationship.

And when she did, it’s because Ross does cheat on Julie with Rachel. Julie really didn’t deserve somebody like Ross, and at least she didn’t get as far as marriage with him.

I did think it was funny that she ended up with Russ (Ross’ doppelganger) who was also played by David Schwimmer.