PICTURED: The Friends cast is seen together again ahead of their reunion special as Jennifer Aniston reveals she thought they would ‘cry our faces off’ during taping
- All six Friends cast members have been seen together again
- The stars posed for the cover of the latest issue of People magazine ahead of the show’s reunion special that will air on HBO Max this month
- Jennifer Aniston , Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer and Matthew Perry were seen clustered together in a gray room
- They shot to fame on the iconic sitcom which ran from 1994 to 2004
All six Friends cast members have been seen together again.
The stars posed for the cover of the latest issue of People magazine ahead of the show’s reunion special that will air on HBO Max this month.
Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer and Matthew Perry – who shot to fame on the iconic sitcom which ran from 1994 to 2004 – were clustered together against a green backdrop as they wore muted shades.
And Jennifer, 52, shared the way all of them felt ahead of the taping: ‘Oh God, how are we going to get through this alive, without just crying our faces off?’
Together again: All six Friends stars got together to cover the latest issue of People magazine ahead of the show’s reunion special on HBO Max
Courteney also revealed that during the process of making the reunion: ‘I was flooded with 10 years of irreplaceable memories.’
Matt admitted that the reunion had been a bit ‘melancholy,’ while Lisa acknowledged it was an ’emotional’ time for them.
During the 10-season run of the NBC sitcom the six stars formed a famously close bond with one another personally and professionally.
They even banded together to negotiate an equal salary hike for all of them, resulting in a $1 million payday apiece per episode.
Emmy favorites: The cast of Friends at the 54th annual Emmy Awards in Los Angeles in 2002
Remember when: Jennifer (left) is pictured sporting her world-famous ‘Rachel’ hairdo on the first season of the show with Courteney (right)
Matthew said their rapport was still ‘magic’ and when Matt joked that it was ‘awkward,’ Matthew meet him in the middle with ‘awkwardly magic.’
Matt’s character Joey and Matthew’s character Chandler begin the series as roommates and remain bosom buddies throughout.
The unscripted reunion special will see them chat about their memories of the show and even read through the episode The One With The Jellyfish.
During that episode Chandler infamously urinates on the leg of Courteney’s character Monica to alleviate the pain from a jellyfish sting.
They have a bond: During the 10-season run of the NBC sitcom the six stars formed a famously close bond with one another personally and professionally
Memory lane: Courteney also revealed that during the process of making the reunion: ‘I was flooded with 10 years of irreplaceable memories’
At the end of that season Monica and Chandler get romantically involved with one another, eventually becoming the series’ most enduring couple.
The show concludes when Monica and Chandler finally leave their Greenwich Village apartment to move to a house in Westchester with their newborn twins.
Courteney has theories on Monica’s future: ‘I always just feel like Monica would be doing something competitively with other mothers and trying to outdo them.’
She added: ‘Whether it’s the bake sale at school or something. I mean, she’d be so annoying. She’d be at the head of the PTA or something.’
Jaw-dropping: They even banded together to negotiate an equal salary hike for all of them, resulting in a $1 million payday apiece per episode
In the last season Lisa’s character Phoebe marries a pianist called Mike Hanigan played by Paul Rudd in the role that made him famous.
Once Monica and Chandler have their babies – through a surrogate played by Anna Faris – Phoebe decides she wants children with Mike as well.
‘Ooh, we could teach them to sing and then we could be like the Von Trapp family,’ she gushes on the finale, ‘only without the Nazis, although that sounds kinda dull.’
Lisa told People that in her mind Phoebe currently ‘is living in Connecticut with Mike and their kids, and she’s in charge of the arts program for the school.’ says.
There for you: Monica and Chandler get romantically involved with one another, eventually becoming the series’ most enduring couple
Phoebe, who was always the oddball of the group, has become ‘the advocate for her kids because they’re different like she was,’ according to Lisa.
Jennifer’s character Rachel starts the show as a runaway bride working as a waitress and eventually makes her way up the ladder in the fashion industry.
She has an on-off relationship with David’s character Ross that even results in a brief drunken Vegas marriage and a baby daughter called Emma.
On the finale of the show they rekindle their romance one more time and she gives up a Louis Vuitton job in Paris in order to remain with him in New York.
Phoebe and Mike: In the last season Lisa’s character Phoebe marries a pianist called Mike Hanigan played by Paul Rudd in the role that made him famous
Jennifer told People about her thoughts on Rachel’s trajectory since: ‘I would like to have maybe started a clothing line of my own, and it’s sort of a small franchise.’
She compared her vision of Rachel’s future to ‘Like a Nili Lotan,’ adding: ‘And I live in New York City on the Upper East Side.’
Chandler starts off miserably working in statistical analysis and data reconfiguration only to eventually quit that job and pursue his comedy writing dream in the ad world.
Matthew feels that by this day and age Chandler has grown into ‘a wonderful father’ as well as ‘a wonderful comedy writer.’
What a ride: Jennifer’s character Rachel has an on-off relationship with David’s character Ross that even results in a brief drunken Vegas marriage and a baby daughter called Emma
Blended family: Along with Emma also has a son called Ben with his first wife Carol, who leaves him for a woman called Susan shortly before the events of the pilot
Matt meanwhile was the only one whose character got a spin-off – the short-lived sitcom Joey chronicling his life as an actor and lovable lothario.
He told People he thinks Joey ‘would have opened a chain of sandwich shops,’ to which Matthew interjected: ‘And eaten all the sandwiches.’
David joked that Ross, a paleontologist, ‘would’ve invested in Joey’s sandwich shop and lost a lot of his savings for his kids.’
Along with Emma also has a son called Ben with his first wife Carol, who leaves him for a woman called Susan shortly before the events of the pilot.
What if: He told People he thinks Joey ‘would have opened a chain of sandwich shops,’ to which Matthew interjected: ‘And eaten all the sandwiches’
The episode showing Carol and Susan’s wedding was so controversial in 1996 when it aired that two NBC affiliates in Texas and Ohio declined to carry it.
Airing May 27, the reunion episode will see the cast engage in a version of the famous trivia game in The One With The Embryos in 1998.
Chandler and Joey face off against Monica and Rachel to see which duo knows the other one better, in a game moderated by Ross.
When Chandler and Joey manage to win the game, they get to trade in their pokier apartment for Monica’s spacious digs across the hall.
Throwback: The reunion will also welcome memorable Friends guest stars including Reese Witherspoon who portrayed Rachel’s sister Jill (right)
The reunion will also welcome an array of celebrity guests including memorable Friends guest stars like Elliott Gould who played Ross and Monica’s father.
Tom Selleck who played Monica’s old flame Richard and Reese Witherspoon who played Rachel’s sister Jill will also make an appearance.
Top-flight fans of the show ranging from pop stars like Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber to sporting legends like David Beckham are slated to be present.
Although the lineup includes such diverse names as Mindy Kaling, Malala Yousafzai and BTS, the reunion has drawn backlash for not having any black guest stars.
Awkward encounters: Tom Selleck who played Monica’s old flame Richard (right) will also feature as will Elliott Gould who portrayed Ross and Monica’s father Jack
None of the black guest stars from the show’s run – from Sherri Shepherd to Aisha Tyler – have been announced as part of the reunion show.
Over the past few years Friends has occasionally drawn controversy over the fact that the main cast was completely white.
Critics have also pointed out the similarities to the black-led sitcom Living Single, which began airing the year before Friends did.
Last spring Lisa told the Times Of London that Friends ‘would not be an all-white cast, for sure’ if it premiered in this day and age as opposed to 27 years ago.
Making it happen: The unscripted reunion special will see them chat about their memories of the show and even read through the episode The One With The Jellyfish
‘Ewww!’: During that episode Chandler infamously urinates on Monica’s leg to alleviate the pain from a jellyfish sting
However she explained that it should be ‘looked at as a time capsule’ and pointed out that it was ‘progressive’ for its era.
All 10 seasons of Friends appeared on HBO Max on May 27, 2020 when the streaming service launched and they were meant to be accompanied by the reunion show.
However the reunion taping had to be delayed on account of the coronavirus pandemic which is why it is dropping a year late.
The six main cast members are reportedly earning massive paychecks for the reunion, allegedly $2.5 to $3 million each, per The Hollywood Reporter.
‘Transponster!’: Airing May 27, the reunion episode will see the cast engage in a version of the famous trivia game in The One With The Embryos in 1998
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