20 "Friends" Behind-The-Scenes Facts That'll Make You Watch The Show In A Whole New Way

Get ready to dive deeper into the world of "Friends" with these behind-the-scenes revelations!

Davy

• Published in Film & TV
• February 13, 2024

"Friends" remains one of the most beloved and enduring sitcoms of all time, captivating audiences with its relatable characters, witty humor, and heartwarming moments.

1: During the filming of the "Friends" pilot, the network became apprehensive that audiences might not warm up to Monica's character due to her decision to sleep with Paul the Wine Guy after their first date. To address this concern, Lisa Kudrow revealed that they devised a survey to gauge the audience's reaction to various aspects of the show, including their opinion on Monica's dating choices.

2: In the episode "The One After the Super Bowl," Matthew Perry extended an invitation to Julia Roberts to guest star on the show. He went as far as sending her a card and flowers as part of his proposal.

Executive producer Kevin Bright shared that Julia responded by challenging Matthew to write her a paper on quantum physics. True to his word, Matthew reportedly wrote the paper and faxed it to her the following day.

3: Friends is credited with popularizing the term "friend zone" thanks to the episode,

"The One with the Blackout," where Joey tells Ross that he's stuck in the friend zone with Rachel.

4: The now-famous moment when Ross says Rachel's name instead of Emily's in "The One with Ross's Wedding" was reportedly inspired by a real-life mistake David Schwimmer made while filming.

In the book Generation Friends: An Inside Look at the Show That Defined a Television Era, while rehearsing lines one day, David accidentally said, "Rachel, the taxi's here" instead of "Emily, the taxi's here." This slip-up inspired producer Greg Malins and co-creator David Crane to tweak the end of the episode.

5: In "The One with Ross's Wedding," they filmed all of the interior moments in London in front of a live studio audience, except for the Phoebe scenes, which were shot on their usual soundstage in LA.

While Friends only taped a typical episode once, for this Season 4 finale, they actually "did it three times," according to co-creator David Crane.

6:The reveal of Monica and Chandler in bed together in the Season 4 finale received such a wild and positive reaction all three times they performed it in front of the live audience that it actually made the creators change the storyline.

At first, Monica and Chandler were just going to sleep together as "a big, quick, funny mistake," but after the audiences' reactions, the creators decided to test out Monica and Chandler as a couple.

7: During Season 5, namely "The One in Vegas," there was reportedly an initial idea for a storyline that involved Chandler cheating on Monica.

The show hired Lisa Cash to play the woman. According to Lisa, she and Matthew Perry even rehearsed the scene, but ultimately Matthew apparently told the writers that he was concerned that fans would "never forgive" Chandler for his actions.

8: Phoebe's hilarious "My eyes! My eyes!" moment in "The One Where Everybody Finds Out" was inspired by Matthew Perry.

Lisa Kudrow explained that the way she says the line was "how Matthew Perry said things," and she actually got his permission to perform the moment like he would before they filmed the episode.

9: Friends often adjusted its jokes based on the live audience's reaction during filming. If a line didn't get laughs, it would be rewritten, or actors would try different readings of the same joke to gauge the audience's response.

As a result, live tapings sometimes extended until 1 or 2 a.m., and at times, audiences were switched halfway through to ensure a fresh and lively atmosphere.

10: In fact, in "The One with the Embryos," which is often considered the best Friends episode, the cast and crew reportedly shot numerous versions of the trivia questions Monica, Rachel, Chandler, and Joey answer during the game for the apartment.

In the end, they used the ones that elicited "the biggest laugh possible."

11: The turkey that Monica and Joey put on their heads during "The One with All the Thanksgivings" wasn't a real turkey, but was instead made out of foam.

However, writer Greg Malins said he did want a real turkey at first, just so Matt LeBlanc had to put it on, but, "the biggest turkey ever for sale is not big enough to fit a human head."

12: Friends, known for its core group of six characters — Monica, Rachel, Phoebe, Chandler, Joey, and Ross — faced a suggestion from NBC to introduce a seventh character.

The network expressed concerns about potentially losing older viewers due to the predominantly youthful cast.

13: Jane Krakowski, Bradley Whitford, Neil Patrick Harris, Sandra Bullock, and Molly Ringwald were all rumored to be in the running for roles in "Insomnia Cafe," the initial title of the iconic series "Friends."

For most of them, the characters they almost played aren't known, Jane was almost brought in to play Phoebe.

14: John Shaffner, the production designer, proposed painting Monica's apartment in a distinctive shade of purple, a decision initially met with skepticism. However, after Shaffner demonstrated the idea on a white model of the set, the team embraced it.

Shaffner believed that the purple color would help define the show's identity and make Monica's apartment stand out from other sitcom sets.

15: Regarding the iconic burnt orange couch in Central Perk, set decorator Greg Grande discovered it while exploring an old basement storage area at Warner Bros.

studios, where the show was filmed. Despite the network's initial concerns about the couch being ripped and not brand-new after the first rehearsal, director James Burrows insisted that it added to the authenticity of the coffee shop, making it feel "absolutely believable and real."

16: Greg Grande, the set decorator, curated Monica's apartment by hunting through thrift stores, the Rose Bowl, Long Beach swap meets, and the Warner Bros. prop house. A distinctive feature is the mismatched dining table chairs, suggesting that Monica couldn't afford a coordinated set. This eclectic furnishing choice helps paint the picture of Monica spending her Sundays in New York, scouring parking lot swap meets for unique pieces, embodying her resourcefulness and individuality.

17: Bruce Willis made a guest appearance on Friends after losing a bet with Matthew Perry regarding the success of their film The Whole Nine Yards at the box office. According to Matthew's memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing, Bruce had doubts about the film's success, so Matthew made a bet with him. If the film failed, Bruce would have to guest-star on Friends.

After Bruce lost the bet, he honored his commitment and appeared in three episodes of the show. Additionally, Bruce donated his entire paycheck from his Friends appearance to charity.

18: When it came to costume design for Friends, ensuring that each character stood out individually while also complementing each other was paramount. Costume designer Debra McGuire achieved this by assigning a specific color palette to each character in Season 1.

Rachel was typically dressed in greens and blues, Monica stuck to a palette of black, white, gray, and burgundy, while Phoebe adorned brighter colors and floral patterns. This careful curation helped to visually distinguish each character while maintaining a cohesive aesthetic for the group.

19: In "The One Where No One's Ready," featuring the memorable scene where Joey wears all of Chandler's clothes, the illusion of layered clothing was created. However, costume designer Debra McGuire revealed that "it opened from the back...it was actually one garment that you walked into." Despite appearing as multiple layers, it was a single piece of clothing.

This iconic look has even inspired fashion, with a parka from Balenciaga in 2018 seemingly drawing inspiration from it.

20: And finally, after filming wrapped, Matthew Perry admitted to pilfering the cookie jar adorned with a clock face from Monica's apartment set.

He later gifted it to Lisa Kudrow as a present, recalling a moment when she mistook it for a real clock, which amused him greatly.

Davy