Friends is the TV show everyone watched and continues to watch. There was something special about it. In every group of friends, there was a Chandler, Phoebe, Joey, Rachel, Ross and/or Monica. And even if there wasn’t, you all wished there was. It was one of those sitcoms that has lived on for years since it ended. And one that fans will die to have come back for a reunion. Only so many shows can say that they have a fan base that has reached the level that Friends has. But there are a lot of secrets that came out about the show since it came off the air in 2004.
Through interviews that have happened with the cast since the show ended, there have been revelations that no one knew before. Whether it was about Rachel’s signature haircut or how certain characters were never supposed to get together.
Regardless what those secrets are, every Friends fan is dying the hear about them. So for all you Friends fanatics out there, and we know there are a lot of you, check out the list below to learn more about your favorite show.
1. Jennifer Didn’t Like Rachel’s Signature Haircut: In an interview to Allure magazine, Aniston admitted that she didn’t really like her character’s Season One haircut. She also said during an interview in the Graham Norton Show that the haircut wasn’t exactly the most practical: ‘Well, Chris McMillan, who we all know and love, he was loaded when he gave me the haircut. Stoned out of his mind, so, which is true, and he didn’t think about, ‘Oh, she’s going to have to do this herself. Look, I’m having a great time being creative with this blow dryer and he leaves me with a round brush and a hairdryer. I don’t know how to make it look like that!’
Pinterest2. Not Rachel and Joey!: It seems that fans weren’t the only ones who didn’t want Rachel and Joey to get together. According to a Vanity Fair interview with Matt LeBlanc in 2014, he said the entire cast was against the decision also. “It felt wildly inappropriate. Everybody got super-defensive about the whole thing. We went to David and Marta as a group and said, ‘We’re really concerned about this. It doesn’t feel right. We have a problem with it.’” Believe us, Matt, the majority of people agreed with you.
Pinterest3. Life Imitating Art: Actor Matt LeBlanc dislocated his shoulder when acting out one scene in which he raced toward the comfy chair when his character, Joey, was fighting with Chandler. LeBlanc said, “I put my arm up to break my fall and just exploded my shoulder.” Once LeBlanc got a sling on to help heal his shoulder it had to be written into the script. They ended up blaming Joey’s dislocation on him jumping on the bed in the plot.
4. The Reason why Phoebe and Joey Never Got Together: Every Friends fan thought that Phoebe and Joey would be the perfect match. And it turns out that Lisa Kudrow and Matt LeBlanc thought that same thing. They went to the writers and asked them if it would be a good idea that the two have been secretly getting together over the years. But they got shut down. The writers stated that they thought the subplot of this happening would be out-of-step with the show’s tone.
5. The Reason Phoebe Can’t Play Guitar: One of the most memorable shticks of the show was Phoebe playing the guitar and the songs she invented. Mostly because she was terrible at playing the guitar and couldn’t hold a tune to save her life. Originally Phoebe was supposed to be a really good musician. The reason behind why she was so bad was because Lisa didn’t bother to learn the actual guitar. We should all be thanking Lisa because this added more hilarity to the already unforgettable Phoebe.
6. Why Was Chandler Awkward?: A lot of Friends character have traits that the actors also attain. So it’s no surprise that Chandler will have some of Matthew Perry’s traits. His awkwardness with women came from a conversation that Perry had with the producers about his own life. And the memorable distinctive emphasis on the word ‘be’ that Chandler is known for, is actually there because Matthew pronounced it that way.
7. Joey’s Black Hair: Apparently Matt LeBlanc didn’t have black hair, that was a trait that Joey was going to have on the show though. Matt LeBlanc stated on The Late, Late Show With James Corden that he was going grey at the time of filming Friends, and had to dye his hair constantly to keep up the silky jet black hair he had. Looking back on the show now we aren’t sure it mattered either way.
8. The Poker Scene Inspiration: The scene in which the girls learn how to play poker is one of the most memorable episodes. The reason this episode got written was due to the female cast members actually learning how to play poker while on the set. Apparently in between takes the cast members would play poker. And the actual female actors learned how to play poker from these mini-games in-between takes. What great inspiration for one of the greatest Friends episodes!
Pinterest9. The Friends are Friends IRL: This is such a relief to Friends fans all around the world. It turns out that the Friends cast members were really close friends while filming the series. In the first few seasons, they would get together and watch the episodes as they aired on TV. This explains why the group had immense chemistry on camera. It’s all because they cared for each other off camera.
Pinterest10. Lisa was Actually Pregnant: During the episode where Phoebe is acting as a surrogate for her brother, Lisa Kudrow was actually pregnant. When the cast and crew got word that Kudrow was expecting, they wrote her pregnancy into the script. It takes a lot of star-power to have this happen on a TV show and Friends fans all agree that Kudrow was worth it. Just as a side note, Kudrow wasn’t pregnant with Triplets!
11. Stage Fright: It seems that even big name stars get shy of performing in front of an audience. Since Friends was shot in front of a live studio audience the group had to act out entire episodes with strangers looking down at them. According to many cast members, most notably Jennifer Aniston, they got really nervous having this happen. They even state that many celebrity guest stars were shy performing in front of a live house.
12. Lisa Kudrow’s Forgetfulness: This is a real shocker to many fans of Friends. Apparently, Lisa Kudrow had an issue remembering her co-star’s names. Though she never forgot to lines, she couldn’t remember Jennifer Aniston’s last name. We are sure that her Friends co-stars didn’t mind, considering that they were all friends in real life. Plus, it’s hard not to love Lisa and forgive her for anything she does. I mean, come on, she’s Phoebe!
13. You Didn’t Like Monica!?: Courtney Cox did a phenomenal job in creating Monica and bringing her to the world. Some Friends fans would even say that Monica is their favorite character. But for Cox herself, she said she didn’t always love her character. She stated in an interview that she often found her character annoying. But that’s what we all loved about Monica, she brought out our annoying side!
14. Wait, How Much Did They Make?: The cast was apparently getting paid the same amount for a couple of seasons on the show. David Schwimmer, who played Ross, went to his co-stars and asked them to band together to ask for a wage increase. And it’s thanks to him that the entire cast received $1 million per episode. See what can happen when friends work together?
Pinterest15. What Floor Were They On?: In the original script for the show the apartment numbers the Friends lived in were 4 and 5. But they got changed to 19 and 20 because the higher the number the higher up they would be. And thankfully they changed this. If they didn’t, there might not have been as many hilarious episodes where the Friends spied on their distant neighbors.
16. Who Doesn’t Watch This Show Still?: According to interviews done since the show ended, Lisa Kudrow and Matthew Perry have stated that they don’t watch the reruns. Lisa explained that if she sees that it’s on, she has to check her mood to see how she’s feeling before she’ll watch it. She said, “If I’m in a bad mood, I’m not going to like seeing myself at all.” Well, speak for yourself Lisa, because we are still all watching.
17. Who Auditioned for Chandler?: Matthew Perry stated that a lot of his friends auditioned for the role of Chandler before he did. He stated that he helped out each of his friends when they went to audition for the role. When it was his turn to come in to read, we guess of that training paid off. He went in and nailed the audition! It’s lucky for him, but not so lucky for his friends. I’m sure they were happy for him, he was the perfect fit to play Chandler.
18. Monica’s Personality: According to Courtney Cox, it was Matthew Perry who gave her Monica’s personality throughout the series. This makes sense because the two of them worked closely together and got even closer as the seasons went on. Chandler possibly being the funniest character on the show rubbed off on Monica. And we are thankful for it all.
Pinterest19. Stopping The Series Sooner: Lisa Kudrow and Matthew Perry have said that if they could go back they would’ve stopped the Series after season 10. This admission happened when Matthew was hosting on CNN and had Lisa on as a guest. They were reflecting on their time on the show and that’s when they mutually agreed that ending the series after Season 10 was a good idea. But we don’t agree with them, we want more seasons and the show to never end!
20. When They Knew It Was Going To Be A Hit: It was Matthew Perry that first thought the show was going to be huge. While filming the episode “The One With The Blackout” Perry shot all of his scenes separate from those of his cast members. In doing this, he was able to watch them work from a distance and it made him realize the show was going to be a success. Well, he definitely wasn’t wrong about that!
21. What was the Original Title?: The show was originally called Insomnia Cafe. In the early ’90s, the creators of Friends, David Crane and Marta Kauffman, wrote a seven-page pitch for Insomnia Café that included many changes then we saw in the series Friends. For example, Ross and Rachel weren’t the key relationship. Instead, Joey and Monica were supposed to be love interests. What a drastically different show that would’ve been, am I right?
22. Ross was Written for David Schwimmer: This might be one of the biggest shocks for Friends fans. We have all thought that all cast members had to audition to get the roles they got. But Executive Producer Kevin Bright worked with David before and wanted to work with him again. He got the writers to write Ross with David in mind, which led to Ross being written with David’s voice.
23. The Magna Doodle Art: Joey’s magna doodle art that hung on the back of his apartment door ended up being a job for the crew. Because the doodles were a star all on their own for the show, the crew began making it their job to incorporate it into the script. Near the end of the seasons, it because one person’s job. That person was Paul Swain who was known to be the best boy of the electric crew.
24. Who Almost Didn’t Return?: Near the end of the series, Jennifer Aniston’s career was taking off at full speed. There were rumours that Aniston wasn’t going to return for the last season. In a 2004 interview with Matt Lauer, Aniston admitted that she had hesitations. “I wanted it to end when people still loved us and we were on a high. And then I was also feeling like, ‘How much more of Rachel do I have in me?’” She eventually agreed to the final season.
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