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TikTok Users Spot ‘Friends’ Continuity Error As Ross and Monica’s Dad Is Replaced by a Different Actor

Nearly 30 years after Friends first aired, fans continue to tune in and pick up on new things — like major continuity errors.

Related: A New Timeline! Everything the 'Friends' Cast Has Said About the Reunion Special

A TikTok user uncovered an issue in a season 8 episode of the show called “The One in Massapequa.” During the episode, the cast attends Ross (David Schwimmer) and Monica Gellar’s (Courteney Cox) parents’ 35th anniversary party. During the event, Judy (Christina Pickles) and Jack Gellar (Elliott Gould) learn Ross and Rachel Green (Jennifer Aniston) secretly married — but that’s hardly the most shocking thing about the Friends episode.

@bronniiieee

Who is THAT? #friendstok #tvbloopers #tvblooperfound #whoknew #trending #viral #fyp #foryou #xyzcba

♬ There goes the crackhead – Matthew Daniel Gordon

“In all my Friends fan years how have I never noticed this guy before?” a TikTok user pointed out in a video on the app showing a stand-in in Gould’s place.

Related: Celebrity Flubs! Biggest Mistakes on Live TV

According to Digital Spy, there’s a simple explanation for the error. The reason the error appears in the episode is a change in filming ratio when the show was streamed on Netflix. The show was originally filmed in 4:3 aspect ratio. Today, the standard is 16:9 — a much wider view. As a result, stand-ins and extras once hidden from view are now visible.

TikTok Users Uncover Viral Friends Continuity Error Involving Ross and Monica's Dad
The cast of Friends Courtesy of TV Land

A similar error occurred in a season 2 episode of Friends called “The One With the Lesbian Wedding.” In it, Ross learns that ex-wife Carol (Anita Louise Barone) is marrying Susan (Susan Hecht) while exchanging their son Ben (Charles Thomas Allen and John Christopher Allen). The baby is visible in the scene — at first with blond hair. In the next, however, he appears to have much darker hair.

Friends fans need not focus on errors in the original series for long. The show is due to return for a reunion special starring the original cast in March after being rescheduled. The special was originally slated to air on HBO Max in May 2020 but had to be pushed back. Matthew Perry, who played Chandler Bing on the sitcom, shared the news on Twitter in November of last year.

Friends reunion being rescheduled for the beginning of March. Looks like we have a busy year coming up. And that’s the way I like it!” he wrote at the time.

Related: 'Friends' Cast: Where Are They Now?

Perry, Aniston, Cox, Lisa Kudrow (Phoebe), Schwimmer and Matt LeBlanc (Joey Tribiani) are all due to return for the reunion special. Aniston shared her excitement about the reunion — and confirmed that everyone would partake — on Instagram in February 2020.

The special will be an hourlong unscripted event during which the cast will look back on major moments, share memories, revisit the original set and even share some behind-the-scenes footage, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

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