‘Friends’ Reunion Best Moments: Secret Crushes, Celeb Cameos and Where the Characters Would Be Today

Credit: Photo By Terence Patrick

'Friends’ Reunion Best Moments: Secret Crushes, Celeb Cameos and Where the Characters Would Be Today

They're back and telling all. Jennifer Aniston (Rachel Green), Courteney Cox (Monica Geller), Lisa Kudrow (Phoebe Buffay), Matt LeBlanc (Joey Tribbiani), Matthew Perry (Chandler Bing) and David Schwimmer (Ross Geller) reunited on screen for the first time since the 2004 series finale of Friends. During the new reunion special, set to be released on HBO Max on Thursday, May 27, the group reminisced about their 10 years together, walked through the original sets of the show and answered questions from host James Corden. The two-hour episode featured appearances from many former guest stars, including Tom Selleck (Richard), Reese Witherspoon (Jill), Thomas Lennon (Joey's hand twin), Christina Pickles (Judy), Elliott Gould (Jack), James Michael Tyler (Gunther) and Maggie Wheeler (Janice). The special, filmed where the original series was shot on Stage 24 at the Warner Bros. Studio, also includes interviews with the show's producers, Kevin S. Bright, Marta Kauffman and David Crane. While Corden, 42, asked some burning questions, he saves some of the best for last, wrapping up by asking where each of their characters would be today. "We ended up getting married, we had some kids and you still play with bones," the Morning Show actress, 52, said about where she and Ross would be today. Cox, 56, also shares that she and Chandler would still be together. [jwplayer uJUC2Uh4] "Her kids are probably — they’re probably graduated, but she’s still in charge of the bake sale at an elementary school. She’s just gotta keep things going [and is in the] PTA," the Cougar Town alum says before referencing Perry, 51. "And you are making me laugh every day." The Massachusetts native then noted, "Just wanted to make sure I factored in there somewhere!" According to Kudrow, 57, Phoebe is still married to Mike (Paul Rudd) and they'd be living in Connecticut. "They had kids, and I think she was, like, the advocate for her kids who are a little different and all the other kids who are a little different, creating the arts program and the music thing," she said. LeBlanc, 53, wrapped up the updates with Joey's status: "He probably opened a sandwich shop in Venice Beach." Scroll through the gallery below for more moments to watch for in the reunion special: [podcast_block]

Credit: Photo By Terence Patrick

'Friends’ Reunion Best Moments: Secret Crushes, Celeb Cameos and Where the Characters Would Be Today

They're back and telling all. Jennifer Aniston (Rachel Green), Courteney Cox (Monica Geller), Lisa Kudrow (Phoebe Buffay), Matt LeBlanc (Joey Tribbiani), Matthew Perry (Chandler Bing) and David Schwimmer (Ross Geller) reunited on screen for the first time since the 2004 series finale of Friends. During the new reunion special, set to be released on HBO Max on Thursday, May 27, the group reminisced about their 10 years together, walked through the original sets of the show and answered questions from host James Corden. The two-hour episode featured appearances from many former guest stars, including Tom Selleck (Richard), Reese Witherspoon (Jill), Thomas Lennon (Joey's hand twin), Christina Pickles (Judy), Elliott Gould (Jack), James Michael Tyler (Gunther) and Maggie Wheeler (Janice). The special, filmed where the original series was shot on Stage 24 at the Warner Bros. Studio, also includes interviews with the show's producers, Kevin S. Bright, Marta Kauffman and David Crane. While Corden, 42, asked some burning questions, he saves some of the best for last, wrapping up by asking where each of their characters would be today. "We ended up getting married, we had some kids and you still play with bones," the Morning Show actress, 52, said about where she and Ross would be today. Cox, 56, also shares that she and Chandler would still be together. [jwplayer uJUC2Uh4] "Her kids are probably — they’re probably graduated, but she’s still in charge of the bake sale at an elementary school. She’s just gotta keep things going [and is in the] PTA," the Cougar Town alum says before referencing Perry, 51. "And you are making me laugh every day." The Massachusetts native then noted, "Just wanted to make sure I factored in there somewhere!" According to Kudrow, 57, Phoebe is still married to Mike (Paul Rudd) and they'd be living in Connecticut. "They had kids, and I think she was, like, the advocate for her kids who are a little different and all the other kids who are a little different, creating the arts program and the music thing," she said. LeBlanc, 53, wrapped up the updates with Joey's status: "He probably opened a sandwich shop in Venice Beach." Scroll through the gallery below for more moments to watch for in the reunion special: [podcast_block]

Credit: YouTube

Casting Secrets

The producers detail the journey of casting each of the six stars. Both Aniston and Perry were already in sitcoms of their own. The Good Girl actress revealed that she had to beg the producers of the show she was already on to let her out of her contract in order to do Friends.

Credit: Giphy

David and Marcel's Rocky Relationship

What was the worst part about filming? For Schwimmer, it was working with Marcel, Ross’ pet monkey.

“What inevitably began to happen was that we would all have choreographed bits timed out and it would get messed up because the monkey didn’t do its job right,” he said. “We’d have to reset, we’d have to go again because the monkey didn’t get it right.”

Both Aniston and Perry couldn’t stop laughing at the American Crime Story actor getting angry while explaining his frustrations. “You didn’t have to deal with it,” he said. “It would sit on my shoulder and the trainer would come up and give the monkey live grubs to eat. … I’d have monkey grubby hands all over! It was time for Marcel to f—k off.”

Credit: Giphy

Proud Parents

Pickles, 86, and Gould, 82, who portrayed Ross and Monica’s parents in the series, were in the audience for the special.

“We loved it because they loved us,” the St. Elsewhere alum, 86, shared. “One day we came to work and they said, ‘The parents are here! The parents are here!’ It was so moving and we really did feel like their parents. In fact, we used to worry about them quite a lot. Elliott said to me, ‘We’re behaving like we’re really their parents,’ and we really did feel we were.” Gould, 82, adorably leaned in and kissed his onscreen wife on the head.

Credit: Giphy

The Huddle

Before every episode but one, the cast would huddle together before calling action. The one they didn’t was season 3’s “The One Where No One’s Ready,” and during filming, LeBlanc pulled his arm out of the socket. From then on, they never missed the huddle.

Credit: YouTube

The Importance of the Audience

Perry admitted that he was under a lot of pressure from the live audience. “I felt like I was gonna die if they didn’t laugh. It’s not healthy for sure, but I would sometimes say a line and they wouldn’t laugh, and I would sweat and go into convulsions,” he shared. “If I didn’t get the laugh I was supposed to get, I would freak out. I felt like that every single night.”

Credit: Courtesy of TV Land

Have They Watched the Show?

Schwimmer, who didn’t remember “The One With the Ball,” explained he hadn’t watched the show in 17 years until recently when his daughter began watching. LeBlanc noted that he sometimes watches, while Kudrow and Perry said they barely have watched any.

Credit: Courtesy of TV Land

Why There Won't Be a Movie or Another Episode

Toward the end of the special, the cast agree they have no interest in filming an actual episode or movie.

“That’s all up to Marta and David and I once heard them say, and I completely agree, that they ended the show very nicely, everyone’s lives are very nice. They would have to unravel all those good things in order for there to be stories. I don’t want anyone’s happy ending unraveled,” Kudrow explained. “Also, at my age, to say, like, ‘floopy,’ stop. You have to grow up!”

Credit: Courtesy Jennifer Aniston/Instagram

Where Would the Characters Be Today?

It’s not surprising that the couples — Phoebe and Mike, Chandler and Monica and Ross and Rachel would all still be together. Joey, for his part, would be running a sandwich shop.

Credit: TVLand

The Crush

One of the best kept secrets in Friends history is that Ross and Rachel nearly happened in real life. “The first season, I had a major crush on Jen,” Schwimmer confessed, to which Aniston responded, “It was reciprocated.” He explained that they never hooked up because “one of us was always in a relationship” while filming the sitcom, but they frequently cuddled during breaks from shooting.  

“I remember saying one time to David, ‘It’s gonna be such a bummer if the first time you and I actually kiss is going to be on national television,’” Aniston recalled. “Sure enough, the first time we kissed was in that coffee shop. We just channeled all of our adoration and love for each other into Ross and Rachel.”

Credit: HBO Max

Celeb Guests

Lady Gaga joined Kudrow for a new rendition of "Smelly Cat." Later in the episode, Cindy Crawford, Cara Delevigne and Justin Bieber modeled famous outfits — including Ross' leather pants, Rachel's bridesmaids dress and the Holiday Armadillo costume — for a fashion show.