With a brand new live-action Masters Of The Universe hitting screens soon on the 2026 movie schedule, I decided I should go back and watch the first live-action adaptation of the cartoon/toy line. It’s a movie I haven’t seen in, well, almost 40 years. I saw it in theaters in the ‘80s, and I’ve never revisited it. The only thing I remembered about the movie was that I actually remembered nothing about it, except standing by the poster at the theater where I saw it. So how was it? Well, I’ve got thoughts.

It Was A Legendary Flop

Masters Of The Universe, starring Dolph Lungren as He-Man and a young Courteney Cox as a teenager from Earth caught up in the battle between good and evil on Eternia, was a notorious box office bomb when it was released in the summer of 1987. Sure, critics mostly hated it, but they weren’t the target demo. I was. I was 11 years old that summer, and I was the prime target for the movie, having already spent years coming home right after school to watch the cartoon and play with the action figures. Though, to be honest, I was always a much bigger fan of GI Joe.

The problem was, I hated the movie. Well, I think I hated it. As I said, I don’t remember it, but I also never went back to watch it again, so at a minimum, it wasn’t worth a rewatch. This was an era in my life when I rewatched movies I loved over and over again. Master of the Universe wasn’t good enough to find its way into my rotation. I remember being excited for it. I was a fan of Lundgren from Rocky IV, and I knew the cartoon well, but I understand why the movie flopped, because that wasn’t enough to keep me excited about it.

It’s Not That Bad

I’m not going to make a case for Masters of the Universe to be added to the Library of Congress or anything, but I was surprised that it was better than I anticipated. Sure, the special effects are pretty terrible, and Lundgren’s performance is completely flat, but I think the filmmakers made some solid choices, and the movie is pretty fun. Not good, but not bad, either. It’s not deserving of its terrible reputation, at least.

I thought it was smart for writer David Odell and director Gary Goddard to set most of the action on Earth, in small-town USA. That meant they didn’t have to recreate the fantasy planet of Eternia. In fact, almost all of the action on Eternia is in Castle Greyskull’s throne room. With the limited amount of special effects that they had at their disposal, this was a pragmatic decision.

I also love that for most of the movie, it’s kind of a caper, with all the characters chasing after the film’s MacGuffin, a key that frankly had a purpose that was pretty garbled. The key changes hands multiple times, and often characters arrive just minutes too late to reacquire it. It makes the movie super fun. Frank Langella, who plays Skeletor, is also super fun, as he is just chewing the scenery in the best way possible throughout the whole movie. Jared Leto has a lot to live up to!

The new Masters of the Universe is just around the corner, and with the early reactions being mostly very positive, I’m getting excited to see it and how it compares to this one.

The horror genre has been experiencing a renaissance for years now, leading to some of the best horror movies returning to theaters with new sequels. That includes Scream, which has released three new movies in quick succession (streaming with a Paramount+ subscription). The seventh movie brought back Neve Campbell's Sidney Prescott, shortly after Melissa Barrera was fired from her role as Sam Carpenter. And the latter actress recently threw shade at Scream 7, as well as her co-stars who returned for the latest installment in the horror franchise.

While Melissa Barrera was the protagonist of the fifth and sixth Scream movies, she was fired by the studio due to her comments about the conflict between Hamas and Israel. Jenna Ortega later dropped out as Tara, but other members of the Core Four reprised their roles in Scream 7. During a conversation with Variety about her role in Titanique on Broadway, Barrera was asked it felt like her co-stars were "crossing the picket line" by returning for the seventh film. She responding resoundingly with:

Well, she certainly didn't mince her words. It sounds like she isn't happy about actors Jasmin Savoy Brown and Mason Gooding, who play Mindy and Chad Meeks-Martin, continuing their Scream tenures after her firing. While Brown spoke about missing Barrera ahead of filming Scream 7, she ultimately took the gig and made her third appearance in the slasher property. And it sounds like the In the Heights actress didn't appreciate that decision.

Aside from Gooding and Brown, the only other co-star who came back for Scream 7 was Courteney Cox. Although since she's been playing Gale Weathers since the 1996 original and is the only actor to appear in every single Scream movie, I'm not sure she's in the same category as the newer actors.

Melissa Barrera's interviewer went so far as to say that Scream 7 "sucked", with the actress responding with:

Talk about a conspiracy theory. When it was released Scream 7 broke box office records for the franchise, but it seems like Barrera doesn't believe that reporting. Although that doesn't mean she isn't proud of her time starring as final girl Sam Carpenter, as she continues to sign merchandise for fans who see her in Titanique.

The entire Scream franchise is streaming now on Paramount+, including Scream 7 which arrived earlier this year as part of the 2026 movie release list. We'll just have to wait and see if any of her co-stars respond to her soon-to-be-viral comments.

Watching an episode of Friends, a.k.a. one of the best sitcoms ever, often garners only good vibes, giggles and chuckles, but it wasn’t always the same experience creating the show itself. According to Lisa Kudrow, the TV show’s writers room could get pretty nasty behind closed doors.

It’s not exactly new information that things were different off-camera, given Friends writers’ assistant Amaani Lyle claimed back in 1999 that she was subjected to sexual and racial harassment through offensive comments made by several producers and writers during meetings. Kudrow shared her own less than savory experiences with those comprising the Friends writers room, which she said amounted to around 12 to 15 people, predominantly men. In her words:

Now, Lyle’s case was dismissed in a California Supreme Court case that held that vulgarity can be a necessary part of a creative workplace environment when it comes to a sitcom like Friends. Even so, it sounds like Lisa Kudrow and the other leading women on the show were subject to commentary from the writers’ room they didn’t appreciate. As she added:

Kudrow discusses this element of Friends with The Times amidst recently bringing back her own commentary about making TV shows in her and Michael Patrick King’s HBO series The Comeback. While the latest season is set around the hot-button topic of an AI-crafted sitcom for Valerie Cherish, she’d previously drawn directly from her time on Friends to call out toxic writers rooms she's experienced herself. Case in point, the Season 1 scene where Valerie brought baked cookies to the writers, only to find Paulie G. & Co. making sexualized jokes about her.

In the new interview, she confirms that The Comeback has provided her the “closest thing” to her experience in writers rooms which she describes as being filled with “male energy” and “the sophomoric madness that happens when people are trapped, trying to do a series”. Friends certainly had a grueling schedule for a decade, with each episode taking a week to film in an industry that didn’t typically take so long per episode.

While making Friends might not have always been the best workplace environment, Kudrow has said before that she’ll always talk about it because gave her “everything.” And, following the death of her cast mate Matthew Perry, Kudrow has recently been rewatching Friends and weighing in things like if Ross and Rachel were on a break and about the show’s lack of people of color.

While we might expect a show like Friends to be all fun and games, Kudrow's comment show that the show from the 1990s and 2000s had its workplace faults.

The horror genre's renaissance has been showing no signs of slowing down, to the joy of fans like me. Some of the best horror movies have returned with new sequels recently, including Wes Craven's Scream. Courteney Cox is the only actor who has appeared in every single movie of the franchise (streaming with a Paramount+ subscription), and yes, she knows how bad her infamous Scream 3 bangs are.

Scream 7 broke box office records, and is officially the highest grossing movie of the beloved horror franchise. It seems like the movie's promotional campaign paid off, and during that time Cox appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. In a clip from the show's Instagram, she admitted blame for Gale's infamous bangs from the threequel, saying:

Well, at least she's not honest. For better or worse Cox's bangs in Scream 3 are truly iconic, although they've been the butt of countless jokes in the decades since the movie's 2000 release. But the Friends star has a good sense of humor about it; Cox even rocked those microbangs during Halloween a few years ago. And she also took responsibility for their inception on the slasher sequel.

While speaking to Jimmy Fallon about Scream 7, the late night host and SNL alum was sure to gas Courteney Cox up and tell her that with her beautiful face she can rock any hair cut. She quickly responded to this bit of flattery, saying honestly:

In previous interviews, David Arquette took responsibility for the Scream 3 bangs. He claimed he encouraged his ex and co-star to go with a "Bettie Page" look, which is where the microbangs came in. Unfortunately that bold hairdo hasn't aged well in the years that have passed.

In the interview Jimmy Kimmel put on a wig with those bangs, giving him the look Gale Weathers rocked in the third Scream movie. But Cox didn't back down, going so far as to claim that:

They say any press is good press, and the discourse surrounding Gale's hair in Scream 3 has lasted over two decades at this point. Courteney Cox is one of the most iconic scream queen of all time... regardless of what her hair looks like in the slasher franchise. We'll just have to wait and see if an eighth movie is green lit and what Gale looks like in it.

Scream 7 is still in theaters now as part of the 2026 movie release list. Given how much money its made another sequel seems inevitable, but we'll have to wait and hear from Paramount one way or another.

It’s been three years since we last checked in with one of the best horror franchises, and it definitely hasn’t been an easy road. Scream 7 lost Jenna Ortega and Melissa Barrera as the Carpenter sisters, changed directors and experienced filming delays. But at long last, here we are, with Neve Campbell making her triumphant return to the Scream franchise. Critics saw the flick ahead of its February 27 release, so let’s see what they’re saying about it.

Sidney Prescott will once again be at the forefront of all the stabby action when Scream 7 premieres on the 2026 movie calendar, but she’s far from the only familiar face we’ll see. In addition to Courteney Cox, Mason Gooding, Jasmin Savoy Brown and others reprising their roles, we’ll get the return of previous Ghostface killers Matthew Lillard and Scott Foley, as well as plenty of new characters. Pete Hammond of Deadline celebrates Kevin Williamson’s direction, saying the horror movie is “wickedly entertaining and sweetly nostalgic.” The critic writes:

Other critics, however, are less than enthusiastic about the upcoming horror movie. Rating the film 3 stars out of 5, NME’s Lou Thomas says Scream 7 is still worth the watch with its references, looping circumstances and tricks. However, when it comes to franchise’s seventh movies — like Wes Craven’s New Nightmare, which was basically a Scream forerunner — this film isn’t anywhere near as noteworthy. Thomas continues:

Owen Gleiberman of Variety says Scream 7 gets back to the basics — emphasis on “basic” — as he wonders if anyone even cares who Ghostface is? The critic points out that the movie largely drops the franchise’s signature meta commentary, explaining:

William Bibbiani of The Wrap also says Kevin Williamson seems desperate to get back to the basics, as if the previous two “pretty darn good” movies had whiffed it. It ends up feeling like more of a feature-length celebration of (and apology to) Neve Campbell in what the critic says is a competent but uninspired sequel. Bibbiani writes:

Frank Scheck of THR says to put a knife in this franchise, because it’s done — if not commercially than definitely creatively. The mechanics of the franchise have become “numbingly familiar,” and regardless of who ends up behind the Ghostface mask (or if the trailers give any hints), it’s a letdown. Scheck continues:

While the critics aren’t jumping to call the seventh Scream film the best of the bunch, even many of those who have complaints are still saying the movie’s worth seeing — especially if you’ve already invested in the first six. If you’re pumped about Scream 7’s mix of legacy characters and new cast members, you can check this one out starting Friday, February 27.

I remember the first time I saw Ross and Monica’s dance in one of the most ridiculous episodes of Friends, and I distinctly recall the joy I felt as they busted a move on New Year’s Eve. Well, that same feeling came over me again when I watched Taylor Swift and Domhnall Gleeson dance in the “Opalite” music video. It turns out other Swifties were thinking about this too, because they can’t stop comparing the pop star’s silly dance to that scene from the legendary sitcom.

Right after the “Opalite” video was released, I knew it was one of my favorite Taylor Swift music videos, largely because of the dance she did at the end of it. It’s so funny and ridiculous, and there’s no denying its similarities to the dance Ross and Monica do in “The One with the Routine” (which is Season 6, Episode 10, and it’s available to stream with an HBO Max subscription). To prove that point, take a look at eventswithlana’s TikTok:

Ross and Monica’s moves even fit with “Opalite” perfectly!

Now, I have no clue if this was intentional. While Taylor Swift loves an Easter egg, I cannot confirm or deny if this is one. However, the serendipity here is wild, and it’s hard not to wonder if it was done on purpose.

I mean, along with the full commitment to silly choreo and the fact that Ross and Monica’s moves fit “Opalite,” the pop star did say she and the cast “made the effort to time travel back to the ‘90s,” in her Instagram post about the video. And it’s simply a fact that Friends was one of the best sitcoms of that era. So, in short, the parallels are paralleling in more ways than one, and fans are loving it.

Along with this TikTok and one particularly viral tweet from @everslay13 that featured the video of Ross and Monica and the caption “Opalite music video with no context,” lots of other fans pointed out this similarity too. Here are a few of the reactions that compared this iconic Friends moment to Swift and Gleeson’s dance:

• that Opalite dance sequence was giving Monica and Ross’ routine from friends #OpaliteMusicVideo -theveryfistnat
• This is just as iconic as the Monica and Ross dance routine omg #OpaliteMusicVideo -@sarahsromantics
• close enough. welcome back monica and ross! #opalite -@tswizzie4444
• this is such a monica and ross geller reference😭😭 -@everlikeme

Now that I’ve seen it, I can’t unsee it! This comparison is so spot on. Even though the moves are different, the vibes are certainly the same, and I love how shamelessly the pairs are dancing in both clips. Clearly, they love this routine, despite the reactions from others in their respective clips, and the joy radiating off them is infectious.

So, take this as your sign to choreograph a silly dance with a loved one or learn one of these. Clearly, they’re having a blast, and I love the fact that they radiate such similar positive energy that people can’t help but point it out.

Jennifer Aniston might have strong thoughts about why Friends could never be revived, but the actress having long-lasting relationships with her co-stars always puts a big smile on the faces of fans. Aniston and Courteney Cox in particular are besties, frequently sharing pictures together on social media and apparently boring everyone else around them about their frequent interior design conversations. Now we have a new video of the pair talking about what hair shade Jen should have.

Since Aniston is obviously very well known for her hair – particularly “The Rachel” haircut – the actress got herself into the haircare business a few years ago. She’s got a brand to her name called LolaVie, and boy, does her marketing department know what they are doing bringing back her and Courteney Cox for a new video. Check it out:

In the new video from Jennifer Aniston’s Instagram, The Morning Show star talked about how she’s a natural brunette, she’s just better known for being honey blonde. Then, out of nowhere, Cox appears from behind in a pink robe to use her own hair to show what Aniston looks like with darker hair on her head. It’s a cute moment that would only happen between best friends like them, and so sweet to see as we eternally miss Friends.

Cox’s brunette test on Aniston had the actress remembering the time she had brown hair for the Horrible Bosses movies, which came out in 2011 and 2014. That was a different look for Aniston, that’s for sure:

Cox commented that Aniston was a “badass dentist” in those movies before the LolaVie founder pointed to her hair and called it “fake.” Ultimately, it’s a fun little advertisement to highlight how great Aniston’s hair is doing despite coloring it so much throughout her career. So much so, that one might forget she’s naturally a brunette!

Aniston has involved Cox before in LolaVie, such as when she did her hair for her to show off her products. In that video, she called it the “greatest day of her life” because she had apparently never gotten to do it before, but wanted to help her out with all her frizz. Whether they are successfully influencing you or not, it’s just so lovely to see these two comedy queens play off each other any chance we get.

Outside of hair-related collabs between these two, Aniston has been enjoying her relationship with her new beau Jim Curtis as of late, and working on the adaptation of I’m Glad My Mom Died. Cox, on the other hand is set to return to her role as Gale Weathers in Scream 7, which hits theaters on February 27. You can always revisit their Friends days with the full series streaming on HBO Max.

In the entertainment business, sometimes actors happen upon a role that, for better or worse, sticks with them for the rest of their careers, and there’s no getting around it. That’s definitely the case for Jennifer Aniston and the cast of Friends. Despite the actress currently starring in another hit series (The Morning Show’s fourth season is airing on the 2025 TV schedule), to some, she will always be Rachel Green. So, with that in mind, she opened up about what that means and bluntly stated the chances of a Friends reboot.

Jennifer Aniston Opens Up About The ‘Lifetime Commitment’ The Cast Has With Friends

Thanks to endless reruns and the ability to stream all 10 seasons with an HBO Max subscription — not to mention lovable characters and jokes that somehow hit just as hard the 86th time as the first — Friends remains as popular as ever, despite having been off the air for 21 years. Jennifer Aniston and her colleagues likely couldn’t have predicted the level of success that would come from the NBC sitcom, and she told Harper’s Bazaar the experience bonded them together like a family, saying:

What I would give to be able to see that text chain!

I love to hear that the Friends stars still keep in touch, and Jennifer Aniston said she even had dinner a few weeks ago with Courteney Cox and Lisa Kudrow. As with any tight-knit group, it sounds like they — along with David Schwimmer, Matt LeBlanc and the late Matthew Perry — have had their ups and downs, but the six of them are bound together forever.

So will we ever get an update on the Central Perk coffee-drinkers?

Jennifer Aniston Shuts Down The Idea Of A Future Friends Revival

The six members of the main cast came together in 2021 for Friends: The Reunion, where they revisited the set, discussed whether Ross and Rachel were on a break and relived some of the show’s more iconic moments. As far as Jennifer Aniston is concerned, that’s all we’re going to get as far as a revival or reboot. She said since Matthew Perry’s death in 2022, there is no world where a sequel or remake could happen, giving a blunt, six-word response:

It’s tough to think that the six of them could never share the stage again, even if they wanted to, since the man who had the funniest lines as Chandler Bing drowned in his hot tub at age 54 after taking a large amount of ketamine.

However, even before Matthew Perry’s untimely death, the idea of a reboot or revival was shot down, and Courteney Cox also said the Friends cast wasn’t likely to do another reunion.

Friends fans will just have to settle for the glorious videos and photos the actors share when the besties do get together, as well as the knowledge that the actors have taken the words of their iconic theme song to heart and will always be there for each other.

Both the cast and fans have celebrated more than 30 years of Friends. Largely, that’s thanks to the series greatly influencing what TV friendship goals– whether platonic, romantic or friends-to-lovers–look like. Between the six, each relationship is as unique and special as the last, and also stands true of the show’s couples. Case and point: Chandler’s proposed storyline of cheating on Monica wouldn’t have equated Ross and Rachel's "on a break" arc, so, let’s dive into it.

The deep-cut trivia of Season 6’s planned script centered around Chandler Bing’s jealousy of Monica Gellar going out to lunch with ex-Richard Burke (Tom Selleck). Which surfaced after the death of Matthew Perry, through an interview with actor Lisa Cash, who was to play the other woman. She shared that Matthew Perry axed the cheating idea because he feared it would alter the show, and its fans' perception too much.

Now, Cash has revealed to NBC News why the late actor was spot on with the nixing. Agreeing with Perry’s stance on the alternate beat, she said if it had aired, it’d be entirely different from the longstanding R&R break discourse. In her explanation, she highlights that the status of the respective couples were in completely contrasting places and would’ve elicited a wildly different outcome, saying:

I agree with both of them. Regardless of where you lie between the break debate, there’s more gray area to maneuver in Ross’ decision. If Perry hadn’t convinced the writers to cut Chandler’s active cheating on Monica, while they were clearly together, the series may have taken a hard left turn and never bounced back.

And even for the some fans who disliked Chandler and Monica’s courtship, I believe the inevitable breakup would’ve altered too much. With the six being so interconnected, it would’ve bled into each dynamic with vast outcomes. And likely, could’ve led to Chandler being exiled, or cast as a villain. So, I’m personally glad that Lisa Cash, who was originally scripted to be a hotel employee who sleeps with Bing, was rerouted to be Ross and Rachel’s flight attendant.

If the bomb dropping Chandler Bing cheating scandal had been pulled off, who knows what kind of butterfly effect it absolutely would’ve had in television and movies, including this year’s ​2025 TV calendar. It certainly wouldn’t have read as ambiguously and endlessly debatable as the Ross and Rachel on a break moment. I, for one, am pleased not to know what could’ve been.

If you’d like to dive back into or check out Season 6, all of Friends is available to stream with a Max subscription.

When The Morning Show Season 4 hits the 2025 TV schedule on September 17, we’re likely to see Jennifer Aniston’s Alex in a world of soapy drama, chaos and all the stress that comes with running a news organization. The actress’ real life, however, couldn’t appear more different. Aniston shared photos from her summer adventures, which featured a lot of friends, dogs and the soft launch of her new boyfriend.

Jennifer Aniston’s photo dumps are always full of love, laughter and recognizable faces. Her latest post is no different, as she thanks summer for serving as the backdrop for fun times with buddies like Courteney Cox, Jason Bateman, Adam Sandler, Sandra Bullock and more, including her partner Jim Curtis. Check it out below:

The Friends star’s latest post hit all the notes we’ve come to expect — vacations with Jason Bateman and his wife Amanda Anka, proof that she and Courteney Cox are bestie goals, a glimpse at her workouts (or, in this case, the aftermath of what looks like a particularly grueling one), and plenty of snuggly dogs — but fans were quick to notice a little something extra on the end.

The 17th slide shows the back of a man’s head watching the sunset on a beach. Fans were quick to call out the soft launch of her alleged relationship with Jim Curtis, who she’s reportedly been connected to since May. Comments included:

• You think we wouldn't notice photo number 17??? ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ – andrea_portugaldeveza
• Oh hello 17 pic ❤️❤️❤️ – jenanistonworld
• The soft launch 👀 – _nicoledavidson_
• We all have been waiting for this post 🙌🥰 – jenanistonbulgaria
• Who's in the 17th pic 🤔 – raman.neel
• 17! Rachel is it your Ross 🤍😍🙌🔥 – mariposa_delicada28

The new couple was reportedly introduced by mutual friends earlier this summer and have been quietly hanging out for the past few months. They’ve seemingly gotten closer to going public, though, as Jennifer Aniston and Jim Curtis have been on two double dates in the past few weeks, per People — one with Courteney Cox and her longtime partner Johnny McDaid and another with Jason Bateman and Amanda Anka.

It’s always fun to see which celebrities pop up in Jennifer Aniston’s Instagram photo dumps, and would the summer really be complete without a reunion between her and The Sandman? Or dinners with Jason Bateman and Sean Hayes? We’ll also never get tired of seeing her reunite with her Friends co-star Courteney Cox, even 20 years after one of the best sitcoms of all time ended (but can still be streamed with an HBO Max subscription).

Jennifer Aniston has made it clear that no one has the right to know about her personal life, but that won't stop us from hoping that maybe she'll choose to let us in a little and show us more of Jim Curtis (next time, maybe we can see his face).

While we wait to see if a hard-launch is in the cards, we’ll definitely be catching up with Alex Levy and her decidedly less care-free life on The Morning Show, whose fourth season premieres Wednesday, September 17, available to stream with an Apple TV+ subscription.

It doesn’t matter how many years pass; it will always be a delight to see the former stars of Friends showing that they actually are friends. In fact, the further away we get from that 2004 series finale, the more wonderful it is to see Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox and the others still showing love for one another. Those two in particular continue to be bestie goals, and a recent video proves they’ve also still got their comedy chops.

Jennifer Aniston will be fully entrenched in drama as Alex Levy when The Morning Show Season 4 hits the 2025 TV schedule, and Courteney Cox is returning to the horror realm as Gale Weathers, with Scream 7 coming to theaters in 2026. However, the Rachel Green and Monica Gellar portrayers slipped back into straight comedy in this Instagram video that shows Aniston blow-drying Cox’s hair. Check it out:

Honestly, how cute are they? You can tell they’ve been friends for 30 years by how easily they move around each other and play off of each other’s dry quips.

In the video, Jennifer Aniston says she’s been wanting to get at Courteney Cox’s hair with some of her LolaVie products to help her take care of that “frizz on top.” (Who else got immediate flashbacks of Monica’s hair in the Barbados humidity?)

Jennifer Aniston grabs some glossing detangler and starts to brush, which Courteney Cox calls a “miracle” because she apparently never brushes her hair. I laughed out loud at Aniston's reaction when she boasted that the product had won “like, 12 awards” (actually, it’s 14, per the LolaVie website) but was met with a distracted, “Has it really? That’s so cool,” from Cox.

Technical difficulties plagued the actresses when the blow dryer actually came out, but the Murder Mystery star got the hang of it and hit her friend with some Peptide Plumping Spray before leading a chant of:

Courteney Cox got some final touches of hair oil before Jennifer Aniston told her to turn to the camera and “show the people,” eliciting another chuckle from yours truly with this exchange:

• Courteney Cox: Is it good?
• Jennifer Aniston: I don’t know.

Other than a stray strand threatening to go in Courteney Cox’s mouth, I think Jennifer Aniston did a great job. It was certainly better than when Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) made Monica look like Dudley Moore:

And you know what? It sure beats those infamous Gale Weathers bangs!

This video is just further proof to me that these actresses have the best friendship, and they’d be a blast to hang around, even if all they were talking about was interior design.

Friends may be long since over, but I hope this friendship never dies. If you want to relive Rachel and Monica’s best moments, you can stream all 10 seasons of Friends — one of the best sitcoms of all time — with an HBO Max subscription.

Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox came to fame in 1994 as two of the stars of Friends, quickly becoming among the most recognizable stars in the world on one of the best sitcoms of all time. They grew close over the next decade, forming a bond that remains as strong as ever today, 30 years later. So what do the actresses talk about when they get together? It turns out their favorite topic is something Aniston says “bores people to tears.”

When Jennifer Aniston — who played Rachel Green on Friends — sees her BFF Courteney Cox — aka Monica Gellar — it doesn’t sound like there’s too much discussion about their work projects, with Aniston set to return to The Morning Show Season 4 in September and Cox going another round with the Ghostface killer(s) when Scream 7 hits theaters in 2026. Instead, the topic on the table might surprise some, as Aniston told People:

I’m going to have to respectfully but strongly disagree with Jennifer Aniston that this would be boring. I would personally be enthralled to watch the real-life buddies pick apart details of a room or hear their preferences on wall color, furniture and state-of-the-art features (because you KNOW the Friends stars and the people they hang with would have the best of the best).

I know HGTV has been having a tough time recently, but the home design network might want to consider giving these actresses a platform so they can bore people to tears on a larger scale.

It’s not the topic that matters, it’s the fact that Friends fanatics like myself invite the characters of the endlessly rewatchable series into our homes on a regular basis, and it’s really heartwarming to know that the love we see between Rachel, Monica, Phoebe, Ross, Chandler and Joey was there, even when the cameras weren’t rolling.

Just seeing them interact in any way makes us happy, like when they call each other by their wild nicknames or share sweet tributes for their former co-stars’ birthdays. The cast finally reunited in 2021 for Friends: The Reunion (available to stream with an HBO Max subscription), which isn’t likely to happen again. In fact, Courteney Cox shut down the idea of another reunion even before Matthew Perry died.

Unless Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox show up on the third and final season of Lisa Kudrow’s The Comeback next year (which I’m totally keeping my fingers crossed for), there’s simply not that much hope of new collaborations between the Friends stars. So would I listen to these two beloved actresses drone on about interior design? Yes, I would. In fact, I think that would be just kick-you-in-the-crotch, spit-on-your-neck fantastic.

I’ll likely never be privy to Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox’s interior design talk, but not to worry; I’ve been just fine with my Friends reruns. You can catch every hilarious Chandler joke, offbeat Phoebe quote and Joey food reference on HBO Max, with all 10 seasons and the reunion available to stream.

It’s been over 20 years since Friends aired its final episodes and, as it remains one of the most rewatchable shows in TV history continues, behind-the-scenes stories continue to come out. We’ve gotten funny anecdotes — the epic prank pulled on Jennifer Aniston — as well as scary moments — Matt LeBlanc’s “genuinely frightening” injury. Now, Courteney Cox has revealed a sweet memory, as she recalled the pre-show ritual she and her co-stars had.

The six stars of Friends skyrocketed to fame in 1994, and going through that whole experience together — including famously negotiating their contracts as a group — formed a bond between them that continues today. It seems like that support for each other started pretty early, as Courteney Cox said at the Inc. 5000 conference (via People):

Somebody cue the Friends theme song, because wow! What a sweet way to center themselves before going out in front of the studio audience and showing their confidence in one another.

In addition to Courteney Cox, the ensemble included Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer and Matthew Perry, who passed away in 2023 in an accidental drowning caused by the “acute effects of ketamine.”

There are plenty of instances that prove the Friends co-stars’ pre-show huddle wasn’t just for show. For example, Matt LeBlanc helped Lisa Kudrow when she had problems playing Phoebe early on. Jennifer Aniston reached out to Matthew Perry about his addiction several times, as the actor explained before his death. The colleagues were together for a pretty significant decade of their lives, seeing each other through marriages, breakups, fertility issues and more.

It may have actually been director James Burrows who set the tone for the six actors to become lifelong pals. In his memoir, he recalled the fabled trip to Las Vegas that he treated them to ahead of Friends’ 1994 premiere, telling them this was their last shot at anonymity. He was right.

They stuck together after that, with Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox and Lisa Kudrow eating lunch together every day (though they didn’t have the viral salad that many have attributed to Aniston). Aniston became the godmother to Cox’s daughter, and the actresses still shout out each other’s birthdays and even get together every once in a while. Also, while there’s probably no pre-show huddle anymore, the actors have often made cameo appearances on each other’s projects.

Given how much the Friends actors make in residuals each year, they probably don’t even need to keep working; however, the actresses are all involved in some highly anticipated projects. Courteney Cox will reprise the role of Gale Weathers in Scream 7, set for release on the 2026 movie calendar. Lisa Kudrow also has big things happening next year, as it was recently announced she’ll return for a third and final season of The Comeback, and Jennifer Aniston will also return to the small screen as executive producer and star of The Morning Show Season 4.

While we wait for these to happen, we can always relive the days of yore (or yesteryear) by streaming all 10 seasons of Friends with an HBO Max subscription and imagining the sweet pre-show huddle that came before.

There are some actors who will always be remembered for one role and, when it comes to the cast of Friends, that’s true for all of them. But what if Courteney Cox, Jennifer Aniston and the rest hadn’t gotten the job? Would the series have still gone on to be one of the best sitcoms of all time? I just learned that one recurring actor on the NBC comedy auditioned for the role of Monica, and she’s got a theory about why she didn’t get it.

Jessica Hecht is well-known to fans of Friends (streaming with a Max subscription) — her character, Susan Bunch, and partner Carol Willick (who was played by two actresses but primarily Jane Sibbett) are among the most beloved Friends side characters. Hecht told Parade she knew series casting director Ellie Kanner from the small Connecticut town of Bloomfield where she grew up, and that’s how she came to audition for the role of Monica Gellar. Hecht said:

Of course, we all know by now that Courteney Cox ultimately landed the job and, apparently, it came at just the right time. Cox was nearly broke when the role of Monica came along, and legend has it that after filming the pilot, she was so confident Friends would be a hit that she went out and bought a Porsche!

Jessica Hecht, meanwhile, thinks she has an idea of why she was passed over, as she continued:

Regardless of the reason, I think it’s safe to say that everything worked out the way it was supposed to, with Jessica Hecht making quite an impact for only appearing in 13 of more than 200 episodes over Friends’ 10 seasons. What makes the situation even funnier is that Jane Sibbett auditioned to play Rachel.

Over the years, fans have heard about some of the other actors who tried to earn a spot on the long-running sitcom. Leah Remini was asked to audition but she passed, saying she didn’t think those roles were meant for her.

Abbott Elementary’s William Stanford Davis reportedly had a bad experience, as he’s said that after his audition, the casting director told his agent that he should quit acting. I’m personally glad he didn’t, because Abbott’s Mr. Johnson is the best.

It’s funny to think about how different Friends could have been with different actors playing Rachel, Ross, Monica, Chandler, Joey and Phoebe. While Jessica Hecht proved she was a good fit for the show, I think the right call was made to cast her as Susan and not Monica.

We're still living in the Golden Age of Superhero movies in Hollywood (some might argue it's sputtering to an end). That doesn't mean there haven't been superhero movies and TV shows in the past, though. In the '80s, there was actually way more than you might remember. We all love Christopher Reeve as Superman and Michael Keaton as Batman, but the list is so much longer than that.

Helen Slater (Supergirl)

After Superman starring Christopher Reeve became a massive hit, the studio started lining up sequels and spinoffs. Supergirl, starring Helen Slater as the titular hero, was one of those. While it exists in the same universe and uses much of the same music, or version of it, it's, frankly, not as good as the first two movies in the franchise. There is one crossover moment, Marc McClure starring as Jimmy Olsen, that's a lot of fun, though. That's not to say it doesn't have its moments, but sadly, it pretty much bombed at the box office.

Michael Keaton (Batman)

Towards the top of any list of iconic superhero portrayals has to be Michael Keaton as Batman in Tim Burton's Batman. People may have winced when Keaton was cast, but he proved all the doubters wrong when he led the character into a new era. Gone was the campiness that marked the 1960s' Batman TV show, and in was a new, darker, grittier version of the Caped Crusader.

William Katt (Ralph Hinkley/Ralph Hanley)

The TV show The Greatest American Hero starring William Katt as the titular hero is mostly remembered today for its banger of a theme song. The show, while fun for a certain demographic of pre-teen boys, somehow managed to last three seasons on ABC before it was canceled with five episodes yet to air in early 1983. Still, the song endures.

Sam J. Jones (Flash Gordon)

Flash Gordon was a different kind of superhero. He didn't have any special powers aside from being a great quarterback, but he was certainly a hero. Sam J. Jones played the titular character in Flash Gordon in 1980 in a wild movie that updated the character, who dates all the way back to the 1930s. Of course, it also has that amazing, unconventional soundtrack by Queen, which has helped it stay relevant for decades.

Gil Gerard (Buck Rogers)

In the late '70s and early '80s, old Depression-era comic strip characters were en vogue, and one of the most popular both in the 1930s and in the '80s was Buck Rogers. The sci-fi show Buck Rogers in the 25th Century was briefly a minor hit for two short seasons on NBC, which was based on a 1977 movie, and is fondly remembered by many Gen X guys, despite its abbreviated run.

Peter Weller (Buckaroo Bonzai)

The 1980s were full of cool, unconventional superheroes, and no hero personified that better than Buckaroo Banzai in 1984's The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension. Buckaroo, played by Peter Weller, was a scientist, adventurer, musician, and more. He and his team do everything they can to stop an alien invasion, and the cast of the movie is totally stacked. Some people may hate the cult classic, but if you grew up with it, you likely love it.

Joe Morton (The Brother)

In The Brother from Another Planet, Joe Morton plays "The Brother," who, like Superman, is an alien with all kinds of powers. The movie, directed by John Sayles, was actually a surprise hit when it was released in 1984 and has since become a cult classic. It was also fairly progressive at the time and wasn't afraid to address race and other social issues head-on.

Casey Kasem (Robin)

Between 1973 and 1985, there were multiple versions of the cartoon Super Friends, but one constant throughout them was legendary DJ Casey Kasem voicing Batman's iconic sidekick, Robin.

Lou Ferrigno (The Incredible Hulk)

Perhaps the most successful superhero show of the era was The Incredible Hulk, starring Lou Ferrigno as The Hulk (and Bill Bixby as his alter ego, David Banner). The show ran for five seasons on CBS, and not only did it make it 80 episodes, but it also produced five made-for-TV movies.

Tanya Roberts (Sheena: Queen of the Jungle)

The first adaptation of the Golden Age comic Sheena, Queen of the Jungle, was a TV show in the 1950s starring Irish McCalla as the titular hero. In 1984, Columbia Pictures revived the hero for Sheena: Queen of the Jungle, starring Tanya Roberts as the female version of Tarzan, an orphan who grew up in the jungle. If we're honest, the movie is pretty cheesy, and the box office reflects that, as it pretty much completely bombed when it was released in 1984. It's a movie that just doesn't know what it is. Comedy? Maybe. Action flick? Sometimes. Melodrama? Sadly, yes.

Jerry O'Connell (Andrew Clements)

The Canadian production My Secret Identity was a good, low-cost option for U.S. syndication, and the show ran for 72 episodes over three seasons as such. The most notable thing about it is that it starred Jerry O'Connell as Andrew Clements, the teenage superhero lead in the show.

Christopher Reeve (Superman)

Of course, we're going to include Christopher Reeve on this list! The first Superman movie, directed by Richard Donner, was released in 1978, but Reeve continued to play the character well into the 1980s with the three sequels. starting in 1980 with Superman II. It could be argued, in fact, that the first sequel is better than the original, but you can't go wrong with either. You can't say the same thing about the final two in the series, which are pretty mediocre at best.

Dick Durock (The Swamp Thing)

Swamp Thing has been a popular comic book anti-hero since the early 1970s. In 1982 Wes Craven brought the character to the big screen, with actor Dick Durock playing the character in The Swamp Thing. Durock returned to the character in 1989 with The Return of Swamp Thing.

Dolph Lundgren (The Punisher)

The history of The Punisher on the big and small screen has been hit or miss, though mostly miss. The very popular Marvel anti-hero first hit the silver screen in 1989, starring Dolph Lundgren, in The Punisher. No one loves that version. In fact, no one loves any of the versions that have appeared in movies, and Jon Bernthal's version in the Netflix-era Marvel shows has proved more enduring.

Ed Gale/Chip Zien (Howard The Duck)

Two actors played the lead character in Howard the Duck, the 1986 box office bomb about the Marvel character. Ed Gale was in the suit, while Chip Zien did the character's voice. He's not really a superhero, per se, but he is a giant duck who can speak and think like a human (or an alien, really), and that has to count for something. More recently, Seth Green has voiced the character in the MCU.

Robin Williams (Popeye)

Some of you might disagree that Popeye is a superhero, but come on, the guy eats spinach and gets super-strength when he does? Sounds like a superhero to us! While 1980's Popeye starring Robin Williams as the sailor man and Shelley Duvall as Olive Oyl was lambasted at the time, it has since found its place as a somewhat beloved cult classic.

Chuck Wagner (Automan)

What if you took the ideas of Tron and flipped them around so that the humanoid computer programs could exist in the real world... and fight crime! That's pretty much the premise of Automan, starring Chuck Wagner as the program-come-to-life. Yeah, it's pretty much as bad as it sounds, and it only lasted 12 episodes on ABC in the mid-1980s.

Mitch Cohen (The Toxic Avenger)

Though it's a classic "B-movie" from the 1980s, The Toxic Avenger has an enduring legacy. The first movie starred Mitch Cohen as The Toxic Avenger. The character has been part of four sequels in the years since, with a different actor playing the character each time, including, most recently, Peter Dinklage.

Michael Crawford (Condorman)

Disney is responsible for some of the biggest superhero movies of all time, with the giant success of the MCU movies in the last couple of decades. Those were the first time the company tried its hand at the genre, though. In 1981, they produced Condorman starring Michael Crawford as the titular hero. If you've forgotten the movie existed, you're not alone.

Micheal J. Fox (Teen Wolf)

Okay, okay, we admit that we're pushing the envelope here, but in our opinion, Teen Wolf definitely belongs on this list. The classic '80s comedy stars Michael J. Fox as a meek teenager who transforms into a powerful wolf with some serious basketball skills. We dare you to tell us he's not a superhero!

Peter Weller (RoboCop)

RoboCop is a classic anti-hero from the 1980s. The first appearance of the character came in the wild 1987 movie directed by Paul Verhoeven, named after the character. That movie, starring Peter Weller, was followed by two direct sequels in the 1990s and a 2014 reboot starring Joel Kinnaman as the cop-turned-android.

John Ritter (Steve Nichols)

1980's Hero At Large starring the late, great John Ritter as Steve Nichols, an out-of-work actor who turns himself into a hapless superhero after a casting call, is actually better than it's remembered for.

Courteney Cox (Gloria Dinallo)

One of Courteney Cox's earliest roles was a superhero in the short-lived TV show Misfits of Science. The show only lasted 16 episodes on NBC in the 1985-'86 television season. Though the show, about a group of teenagers with superpowers, bombed, it sure didn't slow down Cox in her career.

Alan Arkin (Captain Invincible)

1983's The Return of Captain Invincible is a wild movie. It stars Alan Arkin as Captain Invincible, a washed-up superhero who had been forced into retirement, but is forced to suit up when his arch-nemesis returns 30 years after disappearing.

Simon MacCorkindale (Manimal)

One of the many crazy TV shows created by Glen A. Larson in the 1980s was Manimal. The show, which starred Simon MacCorkindale as the titular shape-shifting hero, lasted just eight episodes in 1983. It's a good thing Larson also created Magnum, P.I. and Knight Rider.

Bruce Boxleitner (Tron)

1982's Tron quickly became a cult classic after decent results at the box office in 1982. Bruce Boxleitner starred as Tron, and while he's not a traditional superhero, he was as close as it came in the early '80s when superhero movies weren't really being made. Or, at least, good ones, so we had to include this on the list.

John Newton (Superboy)

Amid all the adaptations of Superman over the years, one that tends to get lost in the shuffle is the '80s show Superboy starring John Newton as the young hero. In Season Two, Newton was replaced by Gerard Christopher. The lasted two more seasons before it was pretty much relegated to the dustbin of TV history, but it really wasn't a bad show for its time.

Mia Farrow (Alura)

Even the great Mia Farrow has starred as a superhero. Sort of. Farrow played Alura, the mother of Supergirl, in 1984's Supergirl. While we don't see her in her traditional costume from the comics, it's impossible to leave such a legend off the list.

Jeff Lester (Captain Justice)

Arguably, the worst example of a TV superhero show on the list (and that's saying something) has to be Once A Hero starring Jeff Lester as Captain Justice. The show aired just three episodes on ABC before being canceled in 1987.

Lewis Van Bergen (Jon Sable)

Like a couple of other examples on this list, Jon Sable is pushing the definition of a superhero, but since he started out as a comic character and at times shows superhuman abilities, we're including him here. Lewis Van Bergen played the character on the ABC show simply titled Sable.

Dolph Lundgren (He-Man)

Toys being turned into multimedia franchises were all the rage in the 1980s, and one of the biggest hits across media was He-Man. In 1987, the cartoon was adapted into a live-action film starring Dolph Lundgren as the Prince of Eternia. The movie, Masters of the Universe: The Motion Picture, wasn't well received and failed to find an audience that matched the popularity of the cartoon or the toys. Maybe there is a future for the franchise, but only time will tell.

Sam J. Jones (The Spirit)

Sam J. Jones is best remembered for starring in Flash Gordon, but that wasn't the only hero he played in the 1980s. In 1987, Jones starred in The Spirit, a made-for-TV movie based on a World War II-era comic of the same name. It's campy and fun, but it's easy to understand why it's not well remembered.

Scream is, without a doubt, one of the best horror movies out there. Between its meta take on the genre and paving the way for a new generation of iconic Final Girls, the Wes Craven franchise changed everything. The cast of '90s superstars included Courteney Cox and David Arquette before they started a family. Their daughter, Coco, gave Scream a shot, but her response to the OG installment is all too real for a parent-kid relationship, and I can’t help but be amused by it.

The Scream legacy continues to run deep, with Scream VII currently in production and slated for a 2026 release. But, the now almost 30-year-old franchise has some other claims to fame, including Arquette and Cox’s relationship and eventual marriage. Family came into play at the 90s Con Scream panel when a fan asked if any of the ensemble's kids have seen the film. Everyone’s favorite Woodsbury Deputy chimed in that his (and Cox’s) kiddo tried it but had such a blunt opinion while watching. Via People, he shared her response:

This response is so on brand for a kid processing something their parent, or in this case, parents, have done. Although watching this decades removed from the time and place of when it premiered, it is understandable that a lot is going on during that hour and fifty-minute runtime. Regardless, I can’t help but love the image of Coco Arquette taking in Sidney Prescott and company’s introduction to Ghostface and her dad trying to explain things to her. I’m sure the weirdest part for her was watching her parents in the game-changing film.

The Cougar Town actor went on to share that their daughter realizes what an impact and following Scream holds, though. He said that she tagged along to one of the screenings and saw the crowd’s deep love for the franchise and realized how much appreciation fans held for her parents. He recalled:

Even though the '90s Craven slasher series can get pretty gruesome, it’s cool to know that BTS there are some really wholesome bright spots. Let’s not forget, if it weren’t for the teen horror movies, who knows if Arquette and Cox would’ve gotten together and had Coco. There are plenty of reasons to be grateful for the iconic title and what it's done for Hollywood and the world. Still, the fun father-daughter moment makes the world of Scream all the more lovable.

And now that Scream 7's delay is officially done and over, there are a lot of exciting things happening, like Cox and Arquette’s casting, along with many other legacy characters. Although, I’m still bummed about Melissa Barrera's firing and the Jenna Ortega exit, but the redirection has helped mend that wound. Along with it, the casting of Prescott’s daughter has me intrigued–it’ll be exciting to see a new family dynamic in Woodsboro play out.

As for Cox, Arquette and their daughter’s experience watching Scream, it just makes my day. There’s nothing like a daughter getting real with her parents about something, I wonder if she ever made it past the first movie, though...

No matter how much time has passed, Friends remains an iconic series and one of the best shows streaming on Max. Even to this day, the show will come back around every once in a while as fans debate over dress colors, reminisce on their favorite moments, or even take a page out of one of the characters’ books. Sarah Michelle Gellar has done the latter, and it’s all thanks to Monica.

Courteney Cox’s beloved character has been known to be a very organized person and always doing things down to the letter. While some may think that she overexaggerated quite a bit, Gellar actually takes after her while on vacation. The Buffy the Vampire Slayer alum told People that she lives by Monica’s “Rules are good. Rules help control the fun” quote, and it’s not just because of their similar last names. But I think Monica would be proud:

To be fair, having to plan a vacation and making sure that everything goes smoothly is not always fun and games, and you certainly need some rules and control. I can’t blame Gellar for wanting to make sure that everything is perfect, but at least she has someone to look up to when it comes to planning and proof that rules and control are always worth it. Plus, having some options and backups isn’t such a bad idea, especially on vacation, and it’s what Gellar loves:

Of course, we could all use a little control in our lives. And rules are helpful, so maybe Monica wasn’t totally out of it whenever she got a little crazy about it. It seems to be working just fine for Gellar, even if she didn’t realize that she was basically like Monica. This just proves that Friends certainly still resonates with fans after all these years.

Meanwhile, Sarah Michelle Gellar is not the only celebrity Friends fan. Christina Ricci previously opened up about trying to tell Lisa Kudrow how big of a fan she is, while Reese Witherspoon recalled sitting on the iconic Central Perk couch when filming her guest appearance on Friends. And there are definitely a lot of other famous Friends fans, and I just love knowing how the show has impacted them.

With over 10 seasons of Friends, the series is perfect for the next long binge and it’s very likely its impact will continue for years to come. It is still hard to believe just how long it’s been since the show premiered, even the Friends cast can’t believe it. Luckily, the show is streaming in full with a Max subscription, so people can watch it time and time again. It’s one of those shows that will never get old, and I can’t wait to hear about how it’s impacting someone else.

For the past 30 years that we’ve been enjoying Friends — one of the best sitcoms of all time — a lot has been said about how often the six main characters sat around drinking coffee at Central Perk rather than working. Another big question should have been how they managed to stay in shape despite rarely working out. The magic of A.I. has now reimagined our Friends as gym rats, and fans have some pretty clever reactions, including a great Joey callback.

Over the course of its 10 seasons (which can be streamed with a Max subscription), we saw hints of the group working on their fitness. One of Phoebe’s most hilarious moments involved her and Rachel going for a run, and Monica was determined to help Chandler lose a few pounds in Season 5. This Instagram post, however, takes things to a whole other level with the A.I. Check it out:

Why does Rachel (or A.I.’s version of Jennifer Aniston) look like she went full beast mode with Kim Kardashian’s trainer? Meanwhile, it looks like Courteney Cox’s Monica is ready to star in her own action movie franchise.

Then there’s Joey. Friends fans know how much Joey liked to eat, and despite this A.I. image of Matt LeBlanc’s soap opera actor looking quite juiced, fans like @sr9el came to the comments of the above post to recall one Season 10 quote where, after being shamed by Rachel’s sister Amy (Christina Applegate in her iconic guest role) over some pizza, Joey shouted:

I mean, don’t you remember how contentious a relationship Joey had with his weights? (“Damn you, 15s!”)

The above quote from “The One Where Rachel’s Sister Babysits” pops up quite a few times under the A.I. post, but it was far from the only clever retort. Many people (including @sofiamelone_ and @ ___bad90s_) recalled “The One With the Ballroom Dancing,” where Chandler (Matthew Perry) tried to get out of his gym membership:

In this A.I. alternate universe, Chandler couldn’t leave Ross without a spotter, and Ross clearly couldn’t say no to Maria, the Lycra spandex covered gym treat. However, fans were a little weary of the powerful paleontologist, saying:

• That’s clearly Russ. – ashleygreen026
• That ain’t Ross that’s Russ – youngsavagemydude

A.I. certainly does have a way of making the characters look just a little bit off — much like David Schwimmer’s alter ego in Season 2’s “The One With Russ.” My favorite part of the Ross image is the picture of himself that’s eerily popping out of the picture frame behind him. Yikes.

Last but not least, there’s Lisa Kudrow’s Phoebe, who looks like she’s been doing a lot more than just running away from Satan (the neighbor’s dog). Instagram user @_cnnr_0818_ might have won the comments with this simple but effective edit to Phoebe’s name, writing:

There are definitely instances of the misuse of artificial intelligence, but sometimes the technology can be used for some frivolous fun, like imagining the Harry Potter cast as Grey’s Anatomy doctors or as stars of The Office.

If seeing Ross, Rachel, Joey, Chandler, Phoebe and Monica as gym rats has you craving re-runs, you can stream all 10 seasons on Max, including Friends’ most ridiculous episodes.

As one of the best sitcoms of all time, Friends continues to be a source of comfort and entertainment for fans like myself through reruns and streaming with a Max subscription but, sometimes, it’s jarring to realize that three whole decades have passed since those Thursday nights on NBC. That may be a bit of a touchy topic for Jennifer Aniston and her co-stars as well. I loved looking back at Courteney Cox’s Walk of Fame ceremony and how Lisa Kudrow really drove home how much time had passed.

Many of Friends' stars continue to show up in projects on the 2025 TV calendar, but there’s no questioning that the NBC sitcom and the relationships they formed back then changed the entire trajectory of their lives. When Courteney Cox — aka Monica Gellar — was honored with a star on the Walk of Fame, Jennifer Aniston and Lisa Kudrow joked about how long it had been that they’d been co-workers, friends, family and sisters, which you can see in the clip on Instagram below:

More than 20 years may have passed since a new episode of Friends hit NBC, and more than 30 have past since the first episode's airing, but it’s pretty fun to see the comedic timing between the stars never went away. Lisa Kudrow seemed insistent on acknowledging just how long it had been, almost like if she said it out loud enough, she might actually believe it. In their speech honoring Courteney Cox, the actresses said:

• "Jennifer Aniston: We’ve known you for a very long time.
• Lisa Kudrow: It’s been that way for since we met 30, almost 30 years ago.
• Aniston: No, not 30 years, that’s a typo."

Coming across this video made me think of just how long ago 30 years was. Friends’ run from 1994 to 2004 spanned my teen years, where I went from tying up the landline so I could watch episodes on the phone with my friends to college watch parties and ultimately getting a buddy to tape “The Last One” on VHS because I had to work that night at my first real job.

In the video above, Lisa Kudrow didn’t mention the multiple decades that had passed just once. As Jennifer Aniston continued, their exchange went:

• "Aniston: I mean she’s just such a really a good human, you know, an extraordinary friend.
• Kudrow: At almost 30 years ago.
• Aniston: Will you stop saying 30 years ago?"

The Phoebe Buffay portrayer got one last one in there, too, as the sitcom’s three female leads gathered for a group hug at the conclusion of the speech, shouting:

Lisa Kudrow makes a good point, and while Jennifer Aniston has talked about the criticism that comes with aging in Hollywood, it’s a blessing that they have these relationships that have lasted so long.

The actors still regularly post tributes on each other’s birthdays, and it’s such a treat for fans when we see a reunion between two or more of them, like Aniston and Courteney Cox blowing kisses during a Facetime call.

Luckily for us as fans, no matter how much time has passed, we’ll always be able to revisit the series, with all 10 seasons (including Friends’ most ridiculous episodes) available to stream on Max.

From the hit sitcom Friends to multiple Adam Sandler movies, Jennifer Aniston has been a comedy queen for decades. Now, she’s taking a page out of Ben Affleck’s book and getting into the funny ads game. Similar to Aniston’s He’s Just Not That Into You co-star and his Boston buddies, the Murder Mystery actress received support from her own besties as well, with Nikki Glaser and Courteney Cox sending her sweet messages about this new venture.

Affleck’s hilarious Boston-themed ad campaign with Dunkin’ has landed him Super Bowl commercial spots and even his own line of DunKings merch. Well, it seems The Morning Show actress wants some hilarious ad action of her own, partnering with Skinny Pop for a silly campaign involving confusion over her very well-known name.

You know a commercial is funny when the very experienced actress can’t make it through a take without laughing, which Aniston admits in the caption of a recent Instagram post.

I swear, every time I see this woman, I’m shocked by the fact that she appears not to have aged a day. Maybe Skinny Pop has magical qualities. Talk about a good ad campaign.

However, the actual commercial consists of Jennifer Aniston playing herself, attempting to check into a hotel while holding a bag of Skinny Pop popcorn, naturally. For some reason, the person at the front desk can’t seem to get her name right, even though she’s a widely famous celebrity (that’s the funny part. Ha!). The hotel staff also seemed pretty distracted by the Skinny Pop, which didn’t help the situation, which I can relate to.

I gotta say, though, this blooper reel posted to Aniston’s Instagram might be even funnier than the actual scripted commercial. Props to the hotel managers’ improv skills for making the We’re The Millers actress break character so many times. You can even see it on his face; he’s thrilled.

Naturally, fans loved this candid content from the Dumplin’ actress, but they weren’t the only ones hyping her up in her Instagram comments. Comedian and recent Golden Globes host Nikki Glaser showed some appreciation for Aniston’s quip, commenting:

High praise from The Roast of Tom Brady star herself.

Of course, there’s no Rachel without Monica, so Aniston's IRL bestie Courteney Cox showed support for her other half too, commenting:

It’s so nice to see the two Friends stars remain close to this very day, with the Scream actress appearing via Facetime photo in Aniston’s most recent photo dump on Instagram. I hope to see them reunited on screen soon, as there is nothing like working with your best friend, especially if you are Jennifer Aniston. Who knows, maybe they could appear in a Skinny Pop ad a la Ben Affleck, Matt Damon and the DunKings.

Also, like the DunKings, the Horrible Bosses actress's friend group is made up of A-listers, including Jennifer Garner, Sandra Bullock, Kerry Washington, and Reese Witherspoon. So, to no surprise, she's also worked with many of them, including Witherspoon, as the besties co-star in one of Apple TV+’s best shows, The Morning Show.

Speaking of that show, the Legally Blonde actress and Aniston just wrapped Season 4 of their workplace drama The Morning Show. It the Just Go With It star’s teasing comments are any indication, we are in for an intense season. The Morning Show Season 4 doesn’t have a release date yet, but with filming done, we hope to see it sometime on the 2025 TV schedule.

Until then, there are plenty of stellar shows on the schedule to check out. While you are watching, see if you can catch Jennifer Aniston eating a bag of Skinny Pop during the commercials.

Many of us are patiently awaiting Jennifer Aniston’s return on The Morning Show Season 4, which is expected to hit the 2025 TV schedule later this year. In the meantime, though, the actress is satiating us with peeks into what her glamorous life has been like lately. While fans are gushing over how happy she looks amongst her puppies and celebrity friends, it’s the sweet photo of her and Courteney Cox that’s giving me life.

Production wrapped on the fourth season of The Morning Show — one of Apple TV+’s best series — in December, and Jennifer Aniston teased that filming was “so hard.” While that makes us excited to find out exactly what that means, it looks like life has been anything but hard with all these friends — furry and otherwise — around her. Check out Aniston’s post:

Quite a few celebs can be seen basking in the sun that is Jennifer Aniston. Sandra Bullock’s there, Jason Bateman and his wife, Bateman’s Smartless co-host Sean Hayes and his husband, Aniston’s longtime BFF Andrea Bendewald and a couple of cute, cute dogs are among those posing for selfies with the Friends star.

Jennifer Aniston looks extremely grateful in the final slide, where she bows her head to make a wish over her birthday cake on what I’m guessing was her 56th birthday celebration on February 11. Fans love how happy the actress appears to be in all of her pics, as they commented:

• Gorgeous girl!! ❤️ you’re glowing ☀️❤️🥰 – numberonefaniston
• I love you and I love this!!!! Seeing you happy makes me happy ❤️ –robertarhavena
• I’m so so so happy to see that you’re happy and healthy!!! 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 – jennythecatt
• Happiness looks so good on you JA 🤍 – gabymarieee
• The way you are loved 💌 everyone wants to have jen ani close :’))) just a lot of love love! – annaisabellag

Even more celebrity friends dropped some love in the comments, including Josh Gad, Whitney Cummings and Jessica Capshaw, as Emmanuel Acho wondered:

That’s a fair question, because at 56 years old Jennifer Aniston is still STUNNING, basically 100% of the time. Of all the selfie love and friendly smiles, though, one photo stood out the most to me, and as a Friends fan, that is of course the pic of her and Courteney Cox.

These two actresses have been connected to each other since 1994 as Rachel Green and Monica Gellar, and to see them blowing kisses to each other over a Facetime call just warms my Millennial heart. The stars of one of the best sitcoms of all time regularly share love for one another and their other Friends co-stars on birthdays — particularly for Lisa Kudrow, as the trio refer to each other by the silliest nicknames.

To those of us who rewatch Friends on a more-than-regular basis, it means a lot anytime the castmates are seen together after all these years.

If you want to start your own Friends binge, all 10 seasons are available to stream with a Max subscription, and while we wait on The Morning Show to return, you can catch up on the first three seasons with your Apple TV+ subscription.

While not every TV show cast gets along as well off-camera as they do on screen, one of the things that made the Friends cast so special — and one of the best sitcoms of all time — is just how close the six actors were in real life. When Matthew Perry died in October 2023 in a drowning due to the effects of ketamine, his former co-stars were “utterly devastated,” saying they’d lost not just a castmate but a family member. As hard as the year has been for those closest to the Chandler Bing actor, an insider said there’s actually one positive aspect that’s come from it.

If we’re looking at the Friends characters, it was probably Lisa Kudrow’s Phoebe Buffay who was best able to find the silver lining in every cloud, and while that’s an admittedly tall order in this case, if there’s any good that Kudrow, Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, David Schwimmer and Matt LeBlanc could take from Matthew Perry’s tragic passing at age 54, a source told Life&Style it’s this:

We’ve seen evidence of how close the six Friends leads have remained in the 20 years since its finale aired. Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox having dinner together, Lisa Kudrow getting lots of birthday love and all of them making cameo appearances on each other’s projects. Aniston even said she was texting with Matthew Perry the day he died.

However, it seems like the tragedy has only strengthened the bond of the five remaining cast members, and it sounds like now they’re keeping in touch pretty regularly. Lisa Kudrow even started rewatching Friends in Matthew Perry’s honor.

The actor who made us laugh so much as Chandler Bing even addressed how important they all were to each other during the Friends reunion in 2021 (available to stream with a Max subscription), saying that anytime they would run into one of the castmates at a party, “you apologized to the people you were with, but they had to understand you had met somebody special to you and you were going to talk to that person for the rest of the night.”

For someone who is being remembered as a man who embodied the “I’ll Be There for You” theme song, one would have to think Matthew Perry would be happy to know he was able to bring his friends together in this way. And if there are silver linings to be found, It’s also undeniable that the actor was able to help so many people by speaking candidly about his addictions. Perry will always be remembered for his role on Friends, but helping people was the legacy he hoped to leave behind.

In addition to streaming all 10 seasons of Friends on Max, you can continue to see the cast on new projects, and we’ve also compiled a list of the best Matthew Perry movies and shows to remember him by.

I cannot count how many times Scrubs has come up when discussing the best TV sitcoms of all time. Over the course of nine seasons (and two networks), the Zach Braff-led medical comedy introduced audiences to some of the most iconic and endearing small-screen characters of the past 25 years, as well as some legendary celebrity guests. With Academy Award winners, Star Wars alumni, and on-the-rise comedians, Sacred Heart Hospital was a hopping place when these 32 actors popped up on Scrubs.

Brendan Fraser

Though Brendan Fraser is best known for roles in movies like The Mummy, The Whale, and Encino Man, the Oscar winner played a small yet pivotal role as Ben Sullivan on Scrubs. Dr. Cox’s (John C. McGinley) brother-in-law, Ben was at the center of several of the best episodes of Scrubs as well as one of the most emotional TV moments of all time. Seriously, Ben is one of the best characters to ever appear on the show, which is saying a lot.

Michael J. Fox

One of several Spin City cast members to show up on Scrubs, Michael J. Fox appeared in a pair of episodes during the show’s third season. Taking on the role of Dr. Kevin Casey, a confident and talented doctor and surgeon dealing with obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Ryan Reynolds

Before he was leading some of the best Marvel movies and showing up in great romantic comedies, Ryan Reynolds had a one-off appearance on Scrubs. Showing up in the show’s second season, Reynolds played Spence, J.D. (Zach Braff) and Turk’s (Donald Faison) college friend who comes to visit while in town for a wedding.

Courteney Cox

A few years after Friends came to an end and a few months before Cougar Town premiered, Courteney Cox had a brief fun on Scrubs. During her handful of appearances in the show’s eighth season, Cox played Dr. Taylor Maddox, the new Sacred Heart chief of medicine following Dr. Kelso’s (Ken Jenkins) sudden departure.

Dick Van Dyke

Probably the Scrubs celebrity guest with the most prolific career, Dick Van Dyke showed up for a single episode partway through the show’s second season. The legendary actor/singer/dancer took on the role of Dr. Doug Townshend, a Sacred Heart doctor who no longer wanted to stick around and keep up with technology and decided to retire.

Elizabeth Banks

In terms of guest spots, few actors appeared in as many episodes as Elizabeth Banks. Between Seasons 5 and 8, Banks popped up in a total of 15 episodes as Dr. Kim Briggs, a urologist at another hospital who eventually became the mother of J.D.’s son before it was all said and done.

Colin Farrell

Colin Farrell was just about everywhere in the 2000s, including Scrubs. The In Bruges actor played Billy Callahan, an Irishman who was sticking around to watch over a man he knocked out in a bar fight, partway through Season 4. Though his arrival caused a stir at Sacred Heart, it all eventually worked out in the end.

Aziz Ansari

Before he became one of the biggest comedians on the planet thanks to Parks and Recreation and Master of None, Aziz Ansari had a supporting role on Scrubs. Ansari appeared throughout the show’s eighth season where he played Dr. Ed Dhandapani, one of J.D.’s young interns, and possibly the laziest person at Sacred Heart.

Heather Graham

A major player throughout Scrubs Season 4, Heather Graham took on the role of Dr. Molly Clock, a psychiatrist at Sacre Heart who kept referring to J.D. as “Johnny.” She appeared in nine episodes during her single-season run on the show.

Billy Dee Williams

Billy Dee Williams, of Star Wars and Brian’s Song fame, showed up in a single episode of Scrubs Season 5. But like other guest stars, Williams played himself, or at least a version that was Julie Quinn’s (Mandy Moore) godfather.

Matthew Perry

The late Matthew Perry (appearing alongside his real-life father, John Bennett Perry) showed up for an episode of Scrubs back in the show’s fourth season. In his one-off appearance, Perry played Murray Marks, a man who comes to Sacred Heart Hospital to donate a kidney to his ailing father.

Mandy Moore

Several years before she led another all-time great NBC series, This Is Us, Mandy Moore showed up on Scrubs as Julie Quinn. Though she only appeared on a pair of episodes during the show’s fifth season, Moore’s character made quite an impact on the staff at Sacred Heart, especially J.D. Their romance was short-lived, but one the hopeless romantic doctor wouldn’t forget.

Richard Kind

Harvey Corman is definitely one of the most iconic (and annoying) guest characters on Scrubs, and that’s all thanks to the brilliant work by Richard Kind. A hypochondriac like no other, Corman was in and out of Sacred Heart Hospital with all kinds of issues and medical emergencies throughout Seasons 2 through 4.

Masi Oka

Before having a massive breakout role on Heroes, Masi Oka appeared on Scrubs off and on between Seasons 1 and 4, in which he took on the role of a lab tech named Franklyn. Though he only appeared in a handful of episodes before leaving the show, Oka’s character showed up in some of the most memorable moments in Scrubs history.

Tom Cavanagh

In addition to leading the comedy series Ed, Tom Cavanagh also had a sizable guest spot on Scrubs. Every once in a while, Cavanagh would show up as J.D.’s older brother, Dan Dorian. There for a life, a shoulder to cry on, or an important life lesson, Dan was there for some of his brother’s most trying moments.

Tara Reid

Tara Reid was part of the Scrubs cast for 11 episodes, with all but one coming from the show’s third season. During her run, Reid took on the role of Danni Sullivan, Ben Sullivan’s younger sister, who became one of J.D.’s many girlfriends at one point.

Phill Lewis

Phill Lewis has appeared just about everywhere throughout his prolific TV career, including Sacred Heart Hospital for a stretch. During his run on Scrubs, Lewis portrayed Hooch, an orthopedic surgeon with a wild and dangerous side, to say the very least.

Jason Bateman

Jason Bateman popped up for a single episode of Scrubs during the show’s fifth season. During his one-off appearance, Bateman plays Mr. Sutton, a garbageman who refuses to thank J.D. after being treated.

John Ritter

The late John Ritter showed up in two episodes of Scrubs as Sam Dorian, J.D.’s dad. The cash-strapped and constantly unemployed character had his issues, but still cared deeply for his song.

Taran Killam

Before landing a steady gig on Saturday Night Live, Taran Killam had a recurring role on Scrubs during the show’s penultimate season. Killam took on the role of Jimmy, one of J.D.’s interns at Sacred Heart.

Jimmie Walker

Jimmie Walker, best known for his portrayal of J.J. Evans and his “Dynomite” catchphrase from Good Times, appeared in two episodes of Scrubs. During the show’s first season, Walker played himself as he appeared in two of the J.D.’s signature daydreams.

Sean Hayes

Best known for his roles as Jack McFarland on Will & Grace, Sean Hayes has made a ton of other appearances over the years. This includes Scrubs, where he played Nick Murdoch, an intern whose time at Sacred Heart was shortlived because he couldn’t handle the stress and emotional toll of watching a young patient’s slow demise under his care.

Ricky Schroder

Ricky Schroder’s career got off to a hot start as a child actor, including multiple appearances and a leading role on Silver Spoons, one of the most beloved sitcoms of the ‘80s. That career would continue well into adulthood for the former teenage star, including a four-episode turn on Scrubs. During the show’s second season, Schroder played Paul Flower, a male nurse Elliott Reid (Sarah Chalke) was embarrassed to admit she was dating.

Kelli Williams

If you look at the list of the best TV shows of all time, you’ll find multiple featuring the work of Kelli Williams. In addition to Law & Order, Quantum Leap, The Practice, and Ally McBeal, there’s also Scrubs. During her two episodes back in 2001, Williams played Kristen Murphy, a surgical student at Sacred Heart Hospital.

Cheryl Hines

In the middle of her run as Larry David’s wife on Curb Your Enthusiasm, Cheryl Hines made a brief appearance on Scrubs. During a single episode in the show’s fifth season, Hines played Paige Cox, Dr. Perry Cox’s very religious sister who shows up at Sacred Heart Hospital and forces the temperamental doctor to think about memories he long locked away in the deepest and most secure vaults of his mind.

Dave Foley

Dave Foley, best known for his time on The Kids in the Hall and movies like A Bug’s Life and Toy Story 2, had a pair of appearances on Scrubs during the middle of the show’s nine-season run. Foley took on the role of Dr. Lester Hedrick, a Sacred Heart grief counselor who was like a softer, kinder, and more easy-going mentor for J.D. when compared to the easily angered and annoyed Dr. Cox.

Julianna Margulies

E.R. wasn’t the only NBC-based show set in a hospital to feature the work of Julianna Margulies, as she also popped up on Scrubs for a couple of episodes during the show’s fourth season. But instead of playing a doctor this time, Margulies took on the role of Jenna Broderick, a candidate for the scariest lawyer award. The malpractice attorney had a habit of showing up and causing trouble, especially with J.D. Not much is known about the character’s whereabouts about J.D. put an end to things.

Keri Russell

Keri Russell, best known for her work on shows like Felicity and The Americans, had a short run on Scrubs, appearing in two episodes. In the show’s sixth season, Russell took on the role of Melody O’Harra, Elliott’s sorority sister who shows up and brings her easy-go-lucky personality and philosophy on life to the core group of the cast, but mostly J.D.

Heather Locklear

Heather Locklear added Scrubs to her long list of TV credits when she appeared for a pair of episodes during the show’s second season. During her time on the show, Locklear played Julie Keaton, a pharmaceutical rep who showed up at Sacred Heart Hospital to sell her company’s latest and greatest product. But she got more than she could chew when she started a relationship with Dr. Perry Cox, which provided a short-lived reprieve for everyone who had grown tired of his anger and outbursts while making rounds.

Christopher Meloni

Christopher Meloni played one of the most sadistic prisoners in the Oz cast as well as a dedicated and complicated detective on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, but did you know he played a pediatrician on Scrubs? Well, that was the case for an episode during the show’s third season in which he played Dr. David Norris, Dr. Cox and Jordan Sullivan’s (Christa Miller) son’s pediatrician. Though a far stretch from his turn as Chris Keller on the landmark HBO series, Dr. Norris was still a wild card, to say the very least.

Amy Smart

Amy Smart showed up in movies like Varsity Blues, Road Trip, and The Butterfly Effect throughout the late ‘90s and early 2000s, but she also had quite a few TV appearances during that stretch of time. This included a spot on Scrubs as Jamie Moyer, aka “Tasty Coma Wife,” the wife of a car crash victim. This led to one of J.D.’s most ridiculous relationships on the series, which is saying something.

Nicole Sullivan

Mad TV star Nicole Sullivan appeared in a handful of episodes of Scrubs. Sullivan played Jill Tracy, a recurring troubled patient at Sacred Heart who made an impact on everyone she encountered, for better or worse. Her death, which ultimately led to one of the show’s most heartbreaking sequences (it features The Fray’s “How To Save a Life”), is one that had a massive impact on the medical staff for years to come.

It’s been a whole year since the world lost Matthew Perry, the Friends actor who hoped talking about his struggles with substance abuse would help others overcome their addictions. On the anniversary of his passing, Perry’s family opened up about the relapse that took his life, but they were far from the only ones feeling the significance of that day. Courteney Cox and Jennifer Aniston posted sweet tributes to their friend, and fans are in disbelief that so much time has passed.

Courteney Cox shared some throwback photos on Instagram on October 28, one year to the day Matthew Perry was found dead in the hot tub of his home in Los Angeles. In addition to a group shot of the six Friends stars together, she included a behind-the-scenes pic of her and her on-screen husband. Fans loved the sight of Monica and Chandler together, but so many were only just finding out that it had been a full year. They took to the comments, saying:

• A year? What on earth. Life is a blur – chrisjohntheobald
• Has it been a year??? WTAF !!! – travelswithkerrin
• A year already? Wow. 🙏🏻❤️ – kaleejo_z
• Yeah, this seems like a bug in the Matrix. I could've swear it's been like 3 or 4 months 😳 – ferrarirodrigo19

Unfortunately we can’t blame a glitch in the matrix for this, and given the big anniversaries Friends is celebrating this year, I doubt any of Matthew Perry’s former castmates were caught off-guard. Earlier this year the actors struggled with how to honor the 20th anniversary of the Friends finale, given it was the show’s first big milestone without their Chandler. Last month marked 30 years since the premiere of what would become one of the greatest sitcoms of all time.

Jennifer Aniston also paid tribute to Matthew Perry on the anniversary of his death, posting on Instagram some images of the adorable moments she and the actor had shared. Her followers were no less surprised that time had passed so quickly, as they wrote:

• Stop it . It hasn’t been a year already- – carly.is.marjoreeces.child
• How has it been a year already? Wow…😢🥺😭 – platinummind
• Already? ❤️‍🩹 – analuizamelo.plastica

It’s so hard to accept that the man responsible for Chandler Bing’s funniest quotes on Friends has been gone for a year already. With that being one of the most rewatchable shows on TV, many of us still see the actor regularly, frozen in time alongside his co-stars.

In the days following Matthew Perry’s passing, the remaining five Friends stars released a joint statement saying they were “utterly devastated” by the loss, and over the past year, other actors have continued to share stories of how Perry helped them in one way or another.

Tate Donovan opened up about the breakup he and Jennifer Aniston were going through when he guest-starred and how Matthew Perry helped him through it. Marlo Thomas remembered his kind smile that told her he appreciated what she was doing when she portrayed Rachel’s mother on Friends, and John Stamos spoke candidly about how Perry saved him from an embarrassing moment during his own guest appearance.

There’s no denying how much Matthew Perry meant to so many people, and it’s simply hard to accept that time has continued to pass since the world lost him. If you want to relive some of the actor’s on-screen work, you can check out any of Perry’s best movies and TV shows, and all 10 seasons of Friends can be streamed with a Max subscription.

Your favorite movie and TV star had to start somewhere and, sometimes, that somewhere is appearing in commercials. There have also been some cases in which an actor has already made it to the top but decided to lend their star power to a TV ad. You can find both kinds in the following collection of TV commercials featuring some huge celebrities.

Ben Affleck (Burger King)

An early blip in Ben Affleck's acting career was a commercial for the popular fast food chain, Burger King. The future live-action Batman actor and Academy Award-winning filmmaker plays a teen who accidentally invents Door Dash when his car phone intercepts a car from a girl who wants to order a whopper.

Cameron Diaz (Coca-Cola)

When Cameron Diaz was still a model primarily, one of her first experiences with acting – before making her feature debut in The Mask – was in a TV ad. The future Shrek movie star shines in an early '90s Coca-Cola commercial that feels a lot more like a perfume ad from the era in its alluring direction.

Paul Rudd (Super Nintendo)

All of Paul Rudd's versatile talents – from making us laugh in movies like The 40-Year-Old Virgin to thrilling us as Ant-Man in the Marvel movies – can be traced back to a Super Nintendo commercial he did in the early '90s. He plays a very enthusiastic video gamer who attracts a crowd when he, somehow, hooks up his console to a drive-in theater projector for the ultimate experience of playing The Legend of Zelda and other favorites.

Jennifer Lawrence (My Super Sweet 16)

Jennifer Lawrence got to be the original My Super Sweet 16 girl without appearing on the actual reality TV series that documented wealthy young women's extravagant birthday celebrations. MTV ran dramatized promos for the then-new show starring the future Academy Award winner and Hunger Games movie star as the birthday girl who encounters a few mishaps during her festivities.

Brad Pitt (Pringles)

Years before he starred in Super Bowl Heineken ad helmed by his Fight Club director, David Fincher, the then-up-and-coming Brad Pitt got a taste of commercial acting by starring in a 1988 Pringles spot. He plays one of three surfer dudes who become stranded on the side of a California road when a trio of lovely women approach them for an impromptu Pringles party.

Amy Adams (Commercial Federal Bank)

Mainstream audiences first became aware of Amy Adams' impeccable singing talent in 2007's Enchanted but customers at Commercial Federal Bank were really the first to discover her. In 1997, the multi-Oscar nominee starred as an Olvia Newton-John lookalike in a parody of 1978's Grease for the bank.

Steve Carell (Brown's Chicken)

Steve Carell's channeled his inner Michael Scott long before leading NBC's The Office cast when he was just starting out acting in commercials. In the early 1990s, he played a Brown's Chicken employee whose clumsy mistake while setting up a marquee advertising "cholesterol-free cooking" accidentally convinces customers the food will cost them nothing.

Drew Barrymore (Pillsbury)

It must have been clear to anyone who spotted Drew Barrymore in her early Pillsbury commercial that she was destined to capture our hearts in E.T. the Extra-terrestrial just a few years later. The 1979 ad stars the then-four-year-old as a little girl whose mother cheers her up on a rainy day by making chocolate chip cookies.

Leonardo DiCaprio (Bubble Yum)

Before breaking out with his supporting role in Growing Pains and really hitting big leading the Titanic cast, the up-and-coming Leonardo DiCaprio did a few commercials. One sees the future Oscar winner demonstrate his natural charisma while demonstrating the powerful flavor of Bubble Yum bubble gum.

Arnold Schwarzenegger (Alinamin V)

You may never be able to look at Arnold Schwarzenegger the same way again after witnessing the series of gobsmackingly bizarre ads the Terminator star filmed in Japan long after his big break. As the spokesperson for an energy drink called Alinamin V, the future California governor puts on a maniacally large smile and is sometimes seen riding the beverage's bottle into space or popping out of it like a genie.

Mila Kunis (Telephone Tammy)

Had Mila Kunis' Jackie Burkhart been a child of the '90s, Telephone Tammy – a doll who responds to your call with an included play phone – sounds like the kind of toy she would have grown up with. Not to mention the fact that the future That '70s Show cast member appeared in a commercial for Mattel when she was just starting out.

Morgan Freeman (Polaroid)

Future Academy Award winner and voice-over extraordinaire Morgan Freeman starred in a number of TV commercials early on in his career. One such ad was a 1970s spot for Polaroid, not as the man holding the camera that instantly prints out photos but the man telling the amateur photographer to cool it with the reshoots.

Britney Spears (Maull's)

Die-hard fans of pop superstar Britney Spears know that she started out as a child actor who worked with Ryan Gosling on The Mickey Mouse Club, among other rising stars. One of her earlier roles was a young girl who was apparently very excited to eat a home-cooked hamburger in a commercial for Maull's Barbecue Sauce, a local St. Louis brand.

Mark Hamill (Kodak)

Before playing Luke in the Star Wars movies made him familiar with technology from a galaxy far, far away, Mark Hamill represented what must have felt like a futuristic innovation at the time. He starred in a 1975 commercial for a Kodak camera that takes high-resolution photos from far away, allowing him to snap a shot of his girlfriend (and her mother) on a balcony while he stays on the ground.

Anne Hathaway (Better Homes And Gardens Real Estate)

Academy Award winner Anne Hathaway first showed her talent for performing in romantic dramas like One Day and The Idea of You in a 1996 commercial for Better Homes and Gardens. She plays a young woman who believes she and her boyfriend will still have time to spend before his family moves away until they learn the real estate agency has already sold the house.

J.K. Simmons (Farmers Insurance)

From his memorable roles in HBO's Oz and Sam Raimi's Spider-Man movies, J.K. Simmons was pretty well known by the time he was cast as Professor Nathaniel Burke of the University of Farmers for a long-running Farmers Insurance ad campaign. When he won his Oscar for Whiplash, host Neil Patrick Harris sang an impromptu parody of the company's commercial jingle.

Harrison Ford (Kirin)

Playing Han Solo in Star Wars and the title hero of the Indiana Jones movies made Harrison Ford an international star and one of the highest-grossing actors of all time. He would also increase his notoriety in Japan by starring in a series of commercials for a regional brand of lager called Kirin.

Keanu Reeves (Corn Flakes)

Before playing a master of kung fu in The Matrix, a master of gun-fu in the John Wick movies, and a master of excellency in the Bill & Ted movies, Keanu Reeves played a master of sneaking a bowl of cereal for himself. The role of a waiter who enjoys some of the breakfast food he has been hired to serve comes from an '80s-era ad for Kellogg's Corn Flakes.

Betty White (Snickers)

Snickers had a funny ad campaign starring well-known actors as metaphorical representations of the out-of-character behavior of hungry people. One of the earliest, and funniest, stars the legendary Betty White as a dude who needs a bite of the protein-loaded candy bar when his performance in a casual football game is off.

Bruce Willis (Seagram's Coolers)

When he was best known for Moonlighting and before starring in one of the all-time greatest action movies, Die Hard, Bruce Willis had another claim to fame: Seagram's Golden. He served as the adult beverage's spokesperson in a series of ads, some of which utilized his musical talents.

Jeff Goldblum (Apartments.com)

It's a little strange how a performer as widely recognized and beloved as Academy Award nominee Jeff Goldblum would be hired to star in an ongoing ad campaign as an original character and not just as himself. Nevertheless, the star of Jurassic Park and The Fly is dazzling and dazzling in the Apartments.com commercials as Brad Bellflower.

Sharon Stone (Finesse)

In the 1990s, films like Basic Instinct and her Academy Award-nominated role in director Martin Scorsese's Casino made Sharon Stone one of the most esteemed, and desirable, actors of her time. In the 1980s, her looks helped sell Finesse shampoo as one of the most desirable brands in the hair care market.

Jack Black (Pitfall)

It appears that Jack Black's charismatic, high-energy sense of humor was something he possessed from a young age. Exhibit A: his appearance in a 1982 commercial for Atari's Pitfall, as a wide-eyed child in a safari hat enthusiastically recalling his experience in the jungle-set video game, years before he played a jungle-set video game character in Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle.

Sarah Michelle Gellar (Burger King)

No one would have believed, in 1983, that an adorable six-year-old girl who became a recurring spokesperson for Burger King would grow up to become one of the fiercest horror Scream Queens in the genre's history. Yet, that would become Sarah Michelle Gellar's destiny after leading the Buffy the Vampire Slayer cast as the titular defender against evil.

Tobey Maguire (Tropicana Twister)

In 1991, when he was still a teen, Tobey Maguire did an ad for a blended juice drink from Tropicana called Tropicana Twister. The future Spider-Man actor only briefly appears as a kid who breaks the fourth wall, suggesting that broccoli be added to the next unique flavor combination.

Courteney Cox (Tampax)

Before starring in the Friends cast as Monica Gellar, Courteney Cox was best known in the 1980s for dancing with Bruce Springsteen in the "Dancing in the Dark" video. However, did you catch the future Scream movies star's appearance in a Tampax ad as a gym patron?

Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Pop-Tarts)

Joseph Gordon-Levitt is one of the most acclaimed former child stars who still act, with film and TV credits that back to the late '80s and early '90s like Angels in the Outfield and, of course, 3rd Rock from the Sun. If you go back even earlier than those classics, you can see the future Looper and Inception star in a 1991 ad for Kellogg's Pop-Tarts as a child who child urging his father to have breakfast before he leaves for work and offers him the toaster pastry.

Bryan Cranston (Preparation H)

Four-time Emmy winner and one-time Academy Award nominee Bryan Cranston has worn many faces throughout his career, from a hapless suburban dad in the Malcolm in the Middle cast to a ruthless drug lord as the lead of the Breaking Bad cast. Years before then, he wore the face of a spokesperson for Preparation H in a commercial from the early 1980s.

Willem Dafoe (Mercedes Benz)

With roles like one of the best Spider-Man movie villains, Green Goblin, and others, Willem Dafoe has proven time and time again that he plays an exceptional bad guy. Thus, he was the perfect choice to star in a Super Bowl ad for Mercedes Benz as the Devil, who almost convinces a young man to trade his soul for the car until he learns how affordable it is.

Geena Davis (WMET)

With an eclectic career that includes her Academy Award-winning role in The Accidental Tourist, the horror-comedy movie favorite Beetlejuice, and plenty more, it is clear Geena Davis can be anything. So, we imagine early '80s TV viewers who lived in the region where WMET broadcasted had no trouble accepting her as the voice of the local rock radio station when she starred in its enchanting commercial.

Jeremy Renner (Duracell)

Before he was defending the Marvel Cinematic Universe with the Avengers, Jeremy Renner made a living as a commercial actor. One of his greatest hits was a 90s-era Duracell ad in which he plays a tourist in Mexico whose stereo battery harnesses the power of a herd bulls.

John Travolta (U.S. Army)

Years before he played Santa in a Capital One ad and sent up his role in Grease for T-Mobile, John Travolta starred in an Army recruitment promo in 1973. Just four years later, his Academy Award-nominated lead role in Saturday Night Fever made him one of the biggest stars on the planet.

It’s been 30 years since Friends premiered on NBC, and it’s arguably one of the best sitcoms of all time, even after all these years. The beloved sitcom is still a favorite among many, whether people are watching reruns on TV or rewatching the entire series with a Max subscription, because there’s just something about Friends that makes it one of the most rewatchable TV shows ever. Now, Courteney Cox is looking back at her time on the series and its popularity, and she also explained the magic reason why fans are still watching.

When Friends premiered on September 22, 1994, it’s likely no one knew just how big the series would become. Fast forward 30 years, and people still can’t get enough of it, heck there’s even a Friends-themed game show in the works for the anniversary. Honestly, it’s hard to believe that it’s been three decades since the show premiered, but Cox didn't even realize just how fast time has flown by as she told People:

It seems like each year goes by faster than the last, and hearing that Friends is celebrating 30 years puts time in a whole new perspective for me.

However, despite the three decades, the series has remained consistently popular thanks to streaming, as so many people have discovered and rewatched it time and time again. Cox has an inkling of why the show is still so popular today, and it’s simply because the series really is like no other:

While there have certainly been some great sitcoms to come after Friends, it’s hard to match the energy the series had (and still has). Even Jennifer Aniston admitted she wouldn’t do another sitcom unless the environment was the same as Friends, which would be hard to match. The show was special in so many ways, and there’s a reason why it's still being constantly talked about three decades after its premiere.

Even though not everything on Friends was perfect, such as the lack of diversity, the show still holds up. Of course, like many series that came out a while ago, some of the storylines didn't age well. However, that's only a minor blemish, because Friends continues to be popular thanks to streaming, and it wouldn’t be surprising if that continued for decades to come.

It's very likely when the 40th and 50th anniversaries of Friends roll around, the show will still be popular and loved by so many. It is definitely one of those comedies that will be around for a very long time, even though the finale aired 20 years ago, because as Cox said, there's a magic to it.

The horror genre has been thriving for years now, to the delight of fans like myself. Some of the best horror movies returned to theaters with new sequels, including the Scream franchise. The last two movies (which can be streamed with a Paramount+ subscription) were released in quick succession, and a seventh slasher is currently in development. As Courteney Cox confirms she’s yet to sign on for Scream 7, she’s advocating for another franchise OG to be brought back.

What we know about Scream 7 is limited, but longtime fans of the franchise were thrilled when it was revealed that Neve Campbell was returning as final girl Sidney Prescott. Fans have been waiting for more casting news, and I personally am hoping Patrick Dempsey will be back as Mark Kincaid. While speaking with Variety, Cox revealed that she's still seemingly in talks to play Gale Weathers again, offering:

How delightfully cryptic. While Cox clarified that she hasn't signed on the dotted line just yet, Scream 7 is still coming down the line. And she didn't give any indication that she doesn't plan on playing Gale Weathers for the seventh time. Fingers crossed the deal gets inked sooner rather than later.

Since Neve Campbell departed Scream VI over a pay dispute, Courteney Cox is officially the only actor who has been in every Scream movie. So securing her for the seventh movie is presumably a priority for the studio.

Later in that same interview, Cox mentioned wanting David Arquette to return in the upcoming horror movie. Despite Dewey's death in the 2022 Scream, she'd like the third part of the franchise's trio of heroes to somehow pop up. In her words:

Points were made. Dewey is definitely a beloved character with Scream fans, which is why his brutal death in the 2022 movie was so heartbreaking. And moviegoers would likely be psyched to see him return, but the question is: how?

There are a few possible options for ways Arquette might be able to reprise his role as Dewey in Scream 7. One option would be some type of video like Randy in Scream 3 or a flashback sequence with Gale. Or director Kevin Williamson could use another macguffin that was utilized in the most recent installments.

In the last two Scream movies, a ghost/vision of Billy Loomis appeared in the mind of Sam Carpenter. It was a fun way to bring the legacy character back, so maybe Gale and/or Sidney could similarly see Dewey in this way? Hey, it's just an idea.

Scream 7 doesn't have a release date at the time of writing this story. For now, check the 2025 movie release dates.

Friends is considered one of the best sitcoms of all time, and it really did offer the roles of a lifetime to Jennifer Anison, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry and David Schwimmer back in 1994. While the actors will forever be associated with those characters, they have accomplished far more than portraying, Rachel, Monica, Phoebe, Joey, Chandler and Ross. Here are 32 other movies and TV shows that feature the main cast of Friends.

The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story

When Ryan Murphy tackled O.J. Simpson's trial for The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story, many were surprised that David Schwimmer was cast as Robert Kardashian. However, Schwimmer's portrayal of Simpson's best friend and attorney was praised by Kim Kardashian, who said it was "just done so well."

The Comeback

In Lisa Kudrow's first big TV role post-Friends, she starred as Valerie Cherish on HBO's The Comeback. The concept was actually pretty meta, featuring an actress (Valerie) joining a series in a humbling (and often cringeworthy) attempt to recapture the fame she'd previously found on another sitcom — all while a camera crew documents her journey for a fictional reality show.

Lost In Space

Around Friends' midpoint, Matt LeBlanc took some time to star in the 1998 sci-fi adventure Lost in Space. He plays Major Don West, a hotshot fighter pilot who is part of the crew that gets lost while attempting to lead a planet-wide emigration from a dying Earth.

Scream

Courteney Cox has found fame on several projects outside of the famed NBC sitcom, but arguably her next-most-recognized character after Monica Gellar is Gale Weathers in the Scream franchise. The cut-throat journalist holds the distinction of being the only main character to appear in every film through Scream VI, but thankfully Gale's infamous bangs did not survive all the sequels.

Fools Rush In

Matthew Perry may have had some hilarious lines as Chandler Bing, but he had some good moments outside of his and Joey's apartment as well. Amongst Perry's best movies is the romantic comedy Fools Rush In, which also stars Salma Hayek in a story of a would-be one-night-stand resulting in a pregnancy and the couple's efforts to make a marriage work despite having just met.

The Morning Show

Jennifer Aniston and her Friends sister Reese Witherspoon reunited in 2019 to executive produce and star on The Morning Show on Apple TV+. The workplace drama tackles issues straight from the headlines, as Aniston and Witherspoon play news anchors who are often right in the center of the turmoil.

Better Nate Than Ever

Better Nate than Ever is a coming-of-age story and celebration of musical theater, as 13-year-old Nate sneaks off to New York to audition for a Broadway show. Once in the Big Apple, he enlists the help of his estranged aunt Heidi (Lisa Kudrow), who has dreams of the Great White Way herself.

Dirt

Three years after Courteney Cox bid goodbye to Monica Gellar, she joined the cast of FX's Dirt as Lucy Spiller, the editor-in-chief of a sleazy tabloid. The show ended after two seasons, doomed by the 2007 writer's strike, a timeslot change, and other factors, but fans did get to see a fun guest appearance by Jennifer Aniston.

17 Again

In 17 Again, Matthew Perry plays 37-year-old Mike O'Donnell, who loses his job and is on the brink of divorce from his high school sweetheart Scarlet (Leslie Mann). After an accident, Mike finds himself back in his 17-year-old body (portrayed by Zac Efron) with the chance to relive his high school experience and perhaps make some changes to ensure a happier future.

Picture Perfect

The Friends cast periodically took part in other projects during the 10 years that the sitcom aired on NBC, and 1997's Pitch Perfect was one of those for Jennifer Aniston. In the rom-com, she plays the advertising executive Kate, who lies and says she's engaged to Jay Mohr's Nick in order to make it look like her life is more stable than it is. The only thing missing from these complicated relationship dynamics was someone shouting, "We were on a break!"

The Pallbearer

It's pretty obvious why the Friends stars were tapped for so many romantic comedies in the '90s. David Schwimmer, for his part, took a break from Ross Gellar to play Tom Thompson in 1996's The Pallbearer. Tom is a struggling twentysomething who agrees to be a pallbearer for a former classmate who has died, despite not remembering him. A strange love triangle forms between Tom, his high school crush and his late friend's mother.

Mad About You

Friends fans know that Phoebe Buffay was a twin, with Lisa Kudrow pulling double duty as both Phoebe and Ursula on eight episodes. What people may not know is that Ursula Buffay was a fully formed character on Friends' fellow NBC Must-See TV offering, Mad About You. Kudrow appeared as Phoebe's ditzy counterpart alongside Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt in 24 episodes from 1992 to 1998.

Episodes

Five years after Matt LeBlanc's Friends spinoff Joey was canceled, the actor returned to the sitcom space on Episodes. LeBlanc plays a fictionalized version of himself — a charming but arrogant actor who signs onto the American remake of the British series Pucks. LeBlanc was nominated for four Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actor during Episodes' run and won one of two Golden Globes for Best Actor that he was up for over those years.

Cougar Town

Premiering in 2009 and running for six seasons, Cougar Town stars Courteney Cox as Jules Cobb, a divorced woman in her 40s trying to reintegrate herself into the dating world. The role nabbed her a Golden Globe Award nomination in 2010, and Friends fans were surely delighted to see cameos from Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow and Matthew Perry.

The Odd Couple

In one of Matthew Perry's final TV roles, the man most famous as Chandler Bing took on another iconic comedic character in The Odd Couple's sloppy Oscar Madison. He starred in the CBS adaptation opposite Thomas Lennon, who played the obsessively clean Felix Unger. Sounds like he and Monica Gellar would have gotten along.

Cake

Jennifer Aniston has proven over the years that her talents stretch far beyond the spoiled Rachel Green, and her performance in 2015's Cake earned both critical praise and a Golden Globe nomination. The actress plays Claire Bennett, a woman who abuses pain medication to deal with the physical and emotional effects of the car accident that killed her son. After the suicide of a woman in her chronic pain support group, Claire forms a bond with her husband and son.

Romy And Michele's High School Reunion

In one of the best movies about female friendship, Lisa Kudrow stars alongside Mira Sorvino in Romy and Michele's High School Reunion. Ten years after graduating, Romy and Michele are roommates who haven't made much of their lives, but they decide to return to high school with fake stories of success in order to face the ex-classmates who bullied them. This 1997 comedy is a cult classic and features a great cast, not to mention an iconic dance from Alan Cumming.

Top Gear

Taking a step away from scripted TV, Matt LeBlanc got to show off his expertise as a car enthusiast when he signed on BBC's Top Gear as a co-host from 2016 to 2019. Even shooting episodes of this show abroad, LeBlanc wasn't able to escape the grasp of Joey Tribbiani, as he has said he once encountered a Moroccan group living in caves far from civilization who, upon seeing him, called him Joey and affected an accent to say, "How you doin'?"

Shining Vale

Courteney Cox has established herself both as a comedic actress on Friends and a scream queen in the Scream movies, and in the 2022 Starz series Shining Vale, she gets to show her expertise in both genres. In the horror comedy series, Cox plays Pat, who is convinced that something is going on in her dysfunctional family's home, with terrible things having taken place in the past.

Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip

In 2006 following the end of Friends, Matthew Perry signed on to Aaron Sorkin's NBC dramedy Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. The series depicted the behind-the-scenes antics of a live sketch comedy show similar to Saturday Night Live, but it was strangely made to compete with 30 Rock, a comedy with a very similar premise, which premiered on NBC only a month after Perry's project. Studio 60 was canceled after its first season.

Office Space

Office Space is considered one of the most Gen X movies of all time, and Jennifer Aniston perfectly embodies that spirit in her role as Joanna, the waitress who gets fed up for her lack of enthusiasm and flair.

Band Of Brothers

Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg teamed up for the powerful miniseries Band of Brothers, which was based on the nonfiction book by Stephen E. Ambrose and premiered on HBO on September 9, 2001. David Schwimmer was in the midst of his stint on Friends but found time to portray Herbert Sobel in the World War II saga that followed soldiers preparing to fight in one of the biggest military conflicts of all time.

Web Therapy

Years before telehealth was a common and necessary thing, Lisa Kudrow tackled the subject in her web series-turned-Showtime-show, Web Therapy. The actress portrays therapist Fiona Wallice, who offers abbreviated sessions to her clients via the Internet. The show utilized a computer screen POV, and featured a number of fun cameos over its four seasons on Showtime, including appearances from Courteney Cox, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry and David Schwimmer. If only Jennifer Aniston could have made it a clean sweep!

Man With A Plan

Matt LeBlanc found himself another sitcom in 2016, starring in Man with a Plan on CBS. He played Adam Burns, who must take on more responsibilities of raising his three kids when his wife Andi decides to go back to work. The series was largely panned by critics, who called it "bland and forgettable," among other things, but it still managed to air for four seasons.

Family Ties

Years before Monica Gellar would enter the realms of television history, Courteney Cox had a recurring role on Family Ties' sixth and seventh seasons. She played Lauren Miller, the girlfriend of Alex P. Keaton (Michael J. Fox) in 19 episodes from 1987 to 1989.

Go On

Matthew Perry took yet another stab at NBC sitcom glory in 2012 with Go On, where he played Ryan King, a sports radio talk show host struggling with the recent death of his wife. He joins an emotional support group, where he's introduced to a motley crew of characters and personalities. Despite being previewed following NBC's Olympics coverage and getting a boost from The Voice as a lead-in, the series was canceled after a single season.

The Good Girl

Jennifer Aniston really got about as far away from Rachel Green as she could in 2002's The Good Girl. Aniston stars as Justine, an employee at a small-town big box store who seems stuck in an unhappy marriage. She engages in an affair with the new cashier Holden (Jake Gyllenhaal), which ultimately ends in tragedy on multiple levels.

The Whole Nine Yards

Approximately halfway through his stint as Chandler Bing, Matthew Perry teamed up with Bruce Willis for the 2000 crime comedy The Whole Nine Yards. Perry plays a dentist named Oz who discovers that his new neighbor Jimmy (Willis) is a highly sought-after former hitman. Oz decides to go to Chicago to inform the mob of Jimmy's whereabouts in order to collect a reward. The pairing of these actors in this movie led to Willis' memorable guest appearance on Friends as the father of Ross' college student girlfriend.

Ace Ventura: Pet Detective

The same year that Friends debuted, Courteney Cox appeared alongside Jim Carrey in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. She played Melissa Robinson, the publicist for the Miami Dolphins, as the zany animal detective is hired to find the team's dolphin mascot after an abduction.

Time Bandits

Lisa Kudrow has said it was "heaven" to work with Jemaine Clement, Iain Morris and Taika Waititi on the Apple TV+ adventure series Time Bandits. Kudrow portrays Penelope, the quasi-leader of a ragtag group of time-traveling thieves, in the 2024 adaptation of Terry Gilliam's 1981 film.

Lovesick

Ten years after Joey Tribbiani finally gave up his key to Monica's apartment, Matt LeBlanc starred in the rom-com Lovesick. In the 2000 movie, he portrayed Charlie Darby, a man who can't find love because of a psychological condition. He must figure out how to overcome this when he meets the girl of his dreams. The film was not well-received by critics, but Friends fans might find something to like in LeBlanc's performance.

The Break-Up

Ironically, The Break-Up inspired a real-life romance between its doomed couple, Jennifer Aniston and Vince Vaughn. The 2006 rom-com sees Gary and Brooke end their relationship but remain roommates, as neither agrees to move out. It's funny. It's awkward. It's ultimately a little heartbreaking.

Since the early days of horror, the genre has always been a place the LGBTQ+ community has gravitated toward, especially in terms of the stories tackling topics of otherness queer people can often relate to. This extends to the Scream movies, which Courteney Cox is now cheerfully celebrating as Pride Month continues!

Courteney Cox Celebrates Pride Month With Scream Fans  

The actress has played Gale Weathers in every Scream movie so far, and is reportedly in talks to return for Scream 7. With June being Pride Month, Cox took to Instagram to share this chaotic, but very spirited, rainbow-filled Scream edit:

Where did she find this? The unhinged Pride graphic has Gale Weathers wearing enough different colors of matching suits to make up the rainbow. And, what’s even better, is Ghostface is in the background rocking a rainbow mask, too. Cox wrote “Gale had a great pride month. Hope you did too 🌈” Check out how fans responded in the comment section:

• “Gale is for the girls and the gays” - @paulitalynn
• “I miss Gale 🌈” - @carolpcgo
• “Gale is a gay Icon!!! ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜” - @brendon.nyc
• “I love you in all your colors, Court ! ❤️” - @cc_rules_forever
• “YOUR EVERYONES ICON COURT 😍😍” - @rachshearts

Fans were absolutely living for the LGBTQ+ geared post from Cox. While Neve Campbell, who is set to star in Scream 7 as well, is thought of as one of the best scream queens in horror history, Cox’s role of Gale Weathers is undoubtedly iconic in her own right!

The LGBTQ+ Subtext Behind Scream 

The recent Scream movies have had queer representation with Jasmin Savoy-Brown’s character, but even the 1996 original has an LGBTQ+ subtext. Its screenwriter, Kevin Williamson is gay. While he has shared he was “very hesitant to present the gay side” of himself back when the movie came out, he does think he wrote the original Ghostface backstory as “a little coded and maybe accidental.” As he told Pride Source in 2022:

The '90s were a different time when it came to gay representation, but as Williamson has shared, he definitely reflects on Matthew Lillard's Stu Macher and Skeet Ulrich’s Billy Loomis being rather “homoerotic.” As he continued:

Williamson’s words came over 20 years after the Scream franchise caught the attention of the LGBTQ+ community. Coming up, Kevin Williamson is set to direct Scream 7 himself! We can’t wait for the sequel to join upcoming horror movies once it goes further into development. Until then, Happy Pride from Courteney Cox, Gale Weathers… and Ghostface?!

As the investigation into the death of Matthew Perry remains ongoing, the actor’s longtime Friends co-star Lisa Kudrow is remembering the good times. She recently shared that she has been rewatching the beloved comedy series in honor of the late actor, and she has a lot of sweet things to say about the sitcom in retrospect.

Kudrow played Phoebe Buffay alongside Matthew Perry’s Chandler Bing for 10 seasons and 236 episodes of Friends. Here’s what Kudrow recently said about how she’s looking back at her friend:

Kudrow got to experience all our favorite Friends moments in real-time, but now she is getting the chance to see the episodes we’ve seen over and over, and perhaps attach to those episodes that really made us Matthew Perry fans. While Lisa Kudrow spoke to THR about her time watching one of the best sitcoms, she also said this:

I don’t know what’s more embarrassing, Kudrow watching her work in one of the best sitcoms of all time, or me wanting to rewatch the whole series (probably for the 20th time) with my Max subscription? While many of us can’t say we have hours and hours of recordings of a decade of our life to look back on, I’m sure many of us would spend some time looking back on it if we did.

It’s sweet to hear Kudrow is returning to Friends following the death of Matthew Perry, who sadly was on the list of actors we lost in 2023. He died back in October at the age of 54 from the acute effects of the anesthetic ketamine. This week, the law enforcement looking into his death told People the investigation is “nearing its conclusion” and believes “multiple people” should be charged for the actor’s death.

Following the Friends finale in 2004, the core cast has remained close. Jennifer Aniston even said that she was texting Perry the morning of his death. When speaking about his memory, Lisa Kudrow shared this as well:

Despite the sadness that comes with knowing that the Friends cast will never be completely reunited again and Perry’s life was cut too short, the actor certainly has left behind an incredible legacy, between Friends and being an advocate for others who struggled with addiction like he did.

Lisa Kudrow’s words about Matthew Perry came as the actress stars in a new series called Time Bandits created by Taika Waititi, Jemaine Clement and Iain Morris. The fantasy adventure series premieres on the 2024 TV schedule for those with an Apple TV+ subscription on July 24.

With May coming to an end, it's time to say goodbye to spring and look forward to June and summer. Complete with fun in the sun, long nights with friends or significant others, and vacations, it’s one of the most anticipated times of the year. While the heat can have its side effects though, Courteney Cox embraced them and celebrated the onset of summer by throwing it back to a hilarious and relatable Friends scene.

Just days away from June, the Friends cast member took to Instagram to share a video as she gets ready to say goodbye to spring and hello to summer. Stepping onto her balcony, Cox shared how much she loved Miami. Unfortunately, once she was outside, her hair went a little bit frizzy, and she used a perfect sound from an episode of Friends to address it:

The episode in question is Season 9’s “The One in Barbados,” where Monica’s hair is as frizzy as ever, thanks to the humidity, as she kept reminding everyone on the gang's trip to the tropical island. At one point in the episode, Monica even tried to wear a hat to help manage it, but it just seemed to get worse and worse, so she pulled off a hipster look of sorts. With summer on the horizon, many people will likely be dealing with frizzy hair and the humidity, and they might be looking like Cox's character.

It’s been 20 years since the Friends finale, but it’s still arguably one of the best sitcoms ever. It’s crazy to think that after all these years the show is still be watched, either with reruns on TV or with a Max subscription. Not to mention the fact that even the cast is still constantly referencing it and not getting tired of it at all. Since there are 10 seasons of Friends, there are likely many more moments that can be used for summer, even if people don’t take a getaway to Barbados. 

It's also crazy knowing that Courteney Cox was nearly broke before Friends came along, and now she’s on a balcony in Miami, thriving and referencing her beloved character. Considering it’s hard to imagine anyone else playing the six friends, it was fate that Cox got the role. Of course, she is also known for the Scream franchise and much more, but Friends was truly what changed it all for her. Now, she gets to get ready for summer while playing back an iconic moment from the NBC sitcom.

Fans may want to take extra good care of their hair this summer if they don’t want to end up like Monica. However, sometimes, you just need to embrace the curls and the humidity. And honestly, it could be fun to recreate Cox's looks. 

“The One in Barbados” is available to stream for Max subscribers if they really want to reminisce about silly moments like these that made Friends so irresistible. 

It’s a pretty well-known Friends trivia fact that the six main stars were each pulling in $1 million per episode by the end of the sitcom’s decade-long run on NBC. Royalties continue to roll in for Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer and the estate of Matthew Perry, and it’s unlikely they’ve had to worry about their bank accounts for a very, very long time. Thirty years ago, however, the same couldn’t be said, as Cox recalled being nearly broke when she got that fateful audition to play Monica Gellar.

Courteney Cox got her big break on Friends in 1994, playing the super-clean tenant of the purple apartment that so many characters lived in. Her success has since continued on other projects, including the Scream franchise, but looking back, she recalled what a game-changer Friends was, telling CBS News: 

It’s unlikely that any of the six actors could have imagined Friends being so successful so quickly — not to mention maintaining that success for decades after the show ended. At the time they were likely just happy to be able to pay the bills for a little longer. 

It seems the show is still paying the bills, in a way, and Courteney Cox does not take for granted how fortunate she is, not just to have the lifestyle Friends has afforded her, but to have gone through that experience with people who she still considers more than just former colleagues. She said: 

Courteney Cox may have been running out of money when the part of Monica came into her life, but according to Sex and the City star Kristin Davis, she had a pretty good feeling that Friends was going to change her luck. Davis has said that back in the day she and Cox were in the same yoga class, and after Cox did the Friends pilot, she was so confident it was going to be a hit that she went out and bought a Porsche.

It wasn’t just the Cougar Town actress who was struggling back in 1994, either. Matt LeBlanc famously was down to just $11 when he and his five would-be co-stars took their fabled trip to Las Vegas for one last hoorah of anonymity ahead of Friends’ premiere.

Things definitely worked out in the financial department for the Friends cast, and it really is crazy to think about how much that one script changed their lives so drastically. Lucky for us, we can continue to enjoy the results of their good fortune by streaming all 10 seasons and the reunion special with a Max subscription.  

It’s hard to believe that two full decades have passed since Matthew Perry spoke the final line on Friends — a joke about where the six core characters could go for a cup of coffee. As the 20th anniversary of “The Last One” approaches on May 6, it will be a bittersweet day, falling less than a year after Perry died at age 54. Sources say the surviving cast members still want to celebrate the milestone, and they are allegedly figuring out the most appropriate way to do that without their Chandler.

The six stars of Friends — Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer and Matthew Perry — all came together on-screen just one time after the 2004 series finale, for Friends: The Reunion (available to stream with a Max subscription). The knowledge that they can never do that again is reportedly weighing on the actors as they approach that 20-year milestone. According to an insider for US Weekly:  

Matthew Perry delivered some of Friends’ most hilarious quotes as Chandler Bing, and just like the sitcom couldn’t have existed without the statistical analysis and data reconfiguration expert, a formal reunion to mark the finale’s 20th anniversary wouldn’t be the same without Perry. 

The cast, however, is still in touch with each other “frequently,” the source reports. They have group chats and will get together one-on-one, with Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox apparently being in “constant contact.” The insider said Matthew Perry’s October 2023 passing was a wakeup call for the other five friends, explaining: 

The fact that they have Friends to thank for their success and the relationships formed through that shared 10-year experience isn’t lost on them, and that’s why they “most certainly” will be commemorating the May 6 anniversary. The source continued: 

The Friends cast paid tribute to Matthew Perry with a touching message after his death, and it will be interesting to see how they decide to handle this first big milestone fpr the show. 

If you want to honor the late actor, you can check out some of Matthew Perry’s best movie and TV appearances or relive some of Chandler’s best episodes. All 10 seasons of the sitcom can be streamed on Max (one of the best streaming services to purchase, per CinemaBlend staffers). 

Friends aired for 10 years on NBC — from 1994 to 2004 — and during that time the world experienced a lot of change. Inarguably, one of the things that affected our country the most over the course of that decade was the September 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington, D.C. 9/11 affected every facet of our lives at that time, from politics to entertainment, and not surprisingly, that included the sitcom Friends, which was set in New York City. Specifically, a Season 8 episode involving Chandler Bing and Monica Gellar’s honeymoon had to be retooled in the aftermath of that day. 

While Friends takes place in New York, the 9/11 attacks were not woven into the show as a storyline, but subtle steps were still taken to honor New York’s first responders and the nearly 3,000 people killed that day. The episode “The One Where Rachel Tells…” also went through major rewrites due to jokes that many would not have found humorous at that time of our lives. Let’s take a look at what the script originally had in store and how it was altered to what we ultimately saw on TV. 

How Chandler And Monica’s Honeymoon Plot Was Changed After 9/11 

In the Season 8 episode that aired October 11, 2001 — exactly one month after the tragic attacks — Monica (Courteney Cox) and Chandler (Matthew Perry) set off on their honeymoon. At the airport they encounter another newly married couple who are upgraded to the last first class seats (complete with access to the exclusive first class lounge) because they’re on their honeymoon. Chandler and Monica are bested again when they reach their destination, and the other couple are given the honeymoon suite, basically for arriving just seconds ahead of the newlywed Bings.

Later in the episode, Phoebe Buffay (Lisa Kudrow) and Joey Tribbiani (Matt LeBlanc) call Monica, lying to say there was a gas leak in her apartment in order to justify them busting down her door. This story would turn out to be relevant to the original story as well.

As originally written, there is no second couple. Chandler and Monica get the upgrade to first class; however, they never make it onto the plane to enjoy it. In that scene that never aired, Chandler — who is responsible for some of Friends’ most hilarious quotes — reads a sign that says jokes about aircraft hijacking or bombs are strictly prohibited, and then promptly tells a member of airport security: 

When pleading his case, Chandler proceeds to tell the authorities that their issue should be with the guy who has bombs, not the guy who jokes about bombs, reasoning that if he were actually carrying a bomb, he likely wouldn’t be joking about it. After they’re cleared to leave, that’s when Monica gets the call from Joey about the fake gas leak. When he asks if she’s sure it’s OK that they break down her door, Monica sarcastically responds:  

This, of course, lands them right back in the custody of airport security. Much of that dialogue made it into the final product, minus the above quote. While this version of the episode was never broadcast, the scenes were apparently included as bonus material on the UK’s Season 8 DVD release, per Business Insider, ultimately making their way onto YouTube. You can see the scenes in question in full below: 

While humor can be an important tool to help people sort through their emotions and even deal with grief, it’s easy to see why airing this version of Monica and Chandler’s story would have been seen as insensitive and tone deaf in the weeks following the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon.  

How Friends Paid Tribute To The 9/11 First Responders And People Of New York 

Some fans thought it was preposterous that a sitcom set in New York City wouldn’t acknowledge the events of September 11, 2001. Executive producer Kevin S. Bright has spoken about that, saying that at first the creative team wasn’t sure about the correct way to address it. In the end Bright said they thought the show would be most effective if it stayed in the comedy lane, telling Digital Spy: 

When Season 8 premiered on September 27, 2001, “The One After ‘I Do’” was dedicated to “The People of New York,” and small nods were made to the events of 9/11 throughout the season. There was now a flag hanging in Central Perk, for instance, and in “The One Where Chandler Takes a Bath,” Joey wore a T-shirt honoring Billy Burke, an NYFD fire captain who died in the North Tower of the World Trade Center.

The board hanging on Joey’s apartment door also could be seen nodding to New York and the fire department. In “The One With Monica’s Boots” — also from Season 8 — you can see a drawing of the Statue of Liberty, as well as “NYFD.”

Whether or not the showrunners were correct to address (or not address) 9/11 in the way they did can be debated, but it does seem like a good call that they restructured Chandler and Monica’s honeymoon story to leave out the jokes about hijacking a plane and bombs — especially with that episode airing just weeks after the Twin Towers fell. 

If you want to relive any of Friends’ 10 seasons — including the retooled version of “The One Where Rachel Tells…” the entire series is available to stream with a Max subscription. Be sure to also take a look at our 2024 TV schedule to see what premieres are coming soon. 

For years now the horror genre has been thriving, to the delight of fans like me. Many of the best horror movies have returned for sequels or reboots, including Scream. There's a seventh movie in development, which is one of the most highly anticipated upcoming horror movies... despite some behind the scene drama. And after Neve Campbell announced her return as Sidney Prescott, another legacy actor is in talks to join. Namely Gale herself, Courteney Cox.

What we know about Scream 7 is very limited, as the project is still in the development stage. But with Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega both skipping out on this next chapter, fans are wondering what Scream legacy characters might help fill out the cast. And per a report by Variety, Cox is in talks to once again return as Gale Weathers. And while this isn't official casting news, it seems unlikely that it would fall through. After al, the Friends alum is the only actor to appear in every single chapter of the franchise.

This news is sure to excite longtime Scream fans like myself, who have a soft spot for the OG characters. And since David Arquette's Dewey was killed in the 2022 Scream (which can be streamed with a Paramount+ subscription), that just leaves Neve Campbell and Courteney Cox. Although Skeet Ulrich did appear briefly in the last two movies as a ghost/vision of Billy Loomis. 

The inclusion of Courteney Cox for Scream 7 feels all the more likely because of the film's director. After Christopher Landon dropped out in the midst of casting shakeups, original Scream writer Kevin Williamson was give the job to replace him. He understands the franchise perhaps better than anyone, and I'd have to assume that reuniting with him in this way would be appealing to Cox. We'll just have to wait for official news from the studio regarding these talks. 

The story of Scream 7 is a complete mystery for the time being, and it should be interesting to see where this new story takes places-- especially after the last film brought the franchise to New York City. But for now the fandom is largely focused on casting, and eager to see who else joins this growing ensemble.

Personally, I'm hoping that Patrick Dempsey finally returns to Scream, after his appearance in the third movie. He recently returned to horror in Thanksgiving, and his character Mark Kincaid has been name dropped as married to Sydney. Hayden Panettiere's Kirby Reed survived Scream VI's ending, as did Mindy and Chad Meeks-Martin, played by Jasmin Savoy Brown and Mason Gooding respectively. 

With no release date for Scream 7, fans will have to patiently wait for information to come. During that time, check out the 2024 movie release dates. 

When it comes to TV power couples, not only did Friends grace us with the iconic duo of Ross and Rachel, but Monica and Chandler had some super cute moments as well. While Jennifer Aniston and David Schwimmer’s characters took until the series finale in 2004 to finally come together for good, they seemed written in the stars from the beginning. Now fans think the showrunners might have dropped a clue confirming this early on, and also possibly hinted at the fates of Courteney Cox and Matthew Perry’s characters as well.

Thanks to Friends reruns being available to stream on demand with a Max subscription, viewers have continued to pick apart details of the sitcom decades after its final episode aired. We’re still fascinated by the story behind Ugly Naked Guy and how Joey’s classic “Could I be wearing any more clothes?” moment went down, and after rewatching the Season 3 episode “The One With the Football,” fans think there might have also been some intentional foreshadowing as to the series’ romances. 

Screenshots from that episode — in which Monica and Ross rekindle a rivalry over their childhood football games — have been making their rounds on social media, with fans noticing some interesting similarities in the clothing choices of the characters. As shown above, Rachel is sporting a backward Nike cap, as Ross wears a sweatshirt with the same logo. Similarly, Monica and Chandler — who started dating in Season 4 and remained together for the duration of the series — are both sporting New York Giants attire. See the photo below: 

This is a pretty fun theory, but it’s hard to say if this might have been an intentional move by the Friends crew. Ross and Rachel were already dating — i.e. not yet “on a break” — at this point in the series, and with their relationship being teased literally from the first episode of Season 1, this is hardly Easter egg material. 

Monica and Chandler, meanwhile, didn’t get together until the very end of Season 4, but Matthew Perry’s character floated the idea of dating Monica several times before they actually got together, including in Season 1’s “The One With the Birth,” which resulted in one of the series’ funniest Chandler Bing quotes.

Executive producer Scott Silveri confirmed in an interview with Vulture that the idea of pairing Monica and Chandler up had been bounced around since Season 2 when they noticed the on-screen chemistry between Courteney Cox and Matthew Perry; however, co-creator Marta Kauffman told Collider they weren’t sure the relationship would last longer than a one-night stand. It wasn’t until viewers reacted so positively to their coupling that Monica and Chandler became endgame, apparently, making any foreshadowing in Season 3 impossible.

Even if unintentional, it’s still a pretty cool detail, and hopefully fans will continue to discover new and fun things about Friends. In addition to the former NBC sitcom, there are a bunch of great shows to watch on Max, including original series like Hacks, The Flight Attendant and many more. 

There was a time when music videos were as important as the radio in promoting the hottest artists and songs of the day. Back in the '80s and '90s, MTV was one of the most powerful cultural forces in the country, and that was reflected in how many stars you can spot in videos from the day. 

Sometimes, they were already huge stars, like Robin Williams and Chevy Chase, other times, they were actors looking to get their break and now, years later, we can marvel at their humble beginnings. This is a list of famous people in videos from the zenith of MTV highlights both.

Alicia Silverstone - "Cryin'"

Alicia Silverstone first got famous for starring in videos, specifically Aerosmith videos. The Clueless star appeared in three videos for the Boston rockers, the first for the song "Cryin'", then later showing up in the videos for "Amazing," alongside Dazed & Confused cast member Jason London. Silverstone's final appearance, and maybe the most famous video, was for the song "Crazy," alongside Steven Tyler's daughter, Liv Tyler. 

Courteney Cox - "Dancing In The Dark"

One of the most famous examples of a star getting her first break in a music video is, of course, Friends star Courteney Cox in the video for Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing In The Dark." The video, which came out in 1984, was directed by Brian De Palma and, according to Cox, she was one of several women Springsteen could have picked out of the audience, and it was random that he chose her. What kismit! 

Cindy Crawford - "Freedom '90"

Director David Fincher, who has had quite an amazing career in film, started in music videos. One of those videos, George Michaels' "Freedom '90," was challenging because Michaels told Fincher he wasn't going to appear in the video. Fincher decided to cast a bevy of famous supermodels to lip-sync the song, including Cindy Crawford in a bathtub. 

Eva Mendes - "Miami"

In 1998, a young actress from Miami was cast in a video for the Will Smith song, "Miami." Eva Mendes had starred in one direct-to-video movie at that point and was that actress. It would be another three years before her breakout role in Training Day. It's a brief moment in the video, as she drove her convertible next to Smith's on the causeway to Miami Beach.

In 1993, Janet Jackson was on top of the world. Her fifth album, janet. was another huge hit, selling millions of copies, partly on the strength of the single, "That's the Way Love Goes." Little did anyone know at the time that one of the extras in the video would go on to a career that eclipsed even Jackson's, a then-unknown Jennifer Lopez. 

Matt LeBlanc - "Miracle"

Bon Jovi's "Miracle" is, let's be frank, not the New Jersey legends' best work. One thing they did get right was the casting for the video. Matt LeBlanc was a young actor and model just starting out on a career, so while his job is really only to look good in this video, he certainly does. It would be a few more years before America was introduced to his comedic chops too. 

Hugh Laurie - "Walking On Broken Glass"

By the time Hugh Laurie appeared in the video for Annie Lennox's "Walking on Broken Glass" in 1992, he was already very famous in the UK. It would be a few more years until the legendary TV show House would debut in the US, making Laurie a household name on both sides of the pond. John Malkovich also stars in the video, reminding fans of his role in Dangerous Liaisons. 

Angelina Jolie - "Wondering"

Angelina Jolie was a model in Hollywood from her teen years on, so it's no wonder she would have a few videos of her resume, including The Rolling Stones' video for "Has Anybody Seen My Baby," but it is surprising to see her in a video for the Athens, GA-based jam band Widespread Panic's song "Wondering" from 1993. Jolie also appears on the cover of the band's album Everyday, which includes "Wondering."

Zooey Deschanel - "She's Got Issues"

Zooey Deschanel is as successful in music, with her duo She & Him as she is on the big screen, so of course she has an early credit in a music video. Deschanel appears with fiery red hair in the video for "She's Got Issues" by The Offspring. 

Naomi Campbell - "Is This Love"

Bob Marley died over four decades ago, but his legacy is as big as ever, with the release of the biopic One Love in 2024. Back in the day, the reggae superstar filmed a video in London for his song "Is This Love" featuring a couple of local kids, including a 7-year-old Naomi Campbell!  

Macaulay Culkin - "Black Or White"

Michael Jackson redefined what a music video could be with "Thriller" and after that, he often released short films that were much more than just a song, and often they had big stars in them. For "Black or White" in 1991, MJ brought in Macaulay Culkin and George Wendt to play father and son, for example. 

Christina Hendricks - "One Hit Wonder"

Long before Christina Hendricks hit the big time with her role in Mad Men, she was a model and struggling actor in the '90s. One of her earliest roles, way back in 1998, was in the video for "One Hit Wonder" by Everclear. Luckily for all of us, that wasn't her only hit. 

Matthew McConaughey - "Walkaway Joe"

Alright, alright, alright, we'll concede that Dazed and Confused is what made Matthew McConaughey famous, but before that, he appeared in Trisha Yearwood's video for her hit "Walkaway Joe," playing the titular character of the song. 

Wesley Snipes - "Bad"

For the second single, "Bad" from his album of the same name, Micheal Jackson teamed up with Martin Scorsese to make an 18-minute short film for the video. In the video, Jackson famously has a dance-off with his rivals in a New York subway station. One of the baddies is none other than Wesley Snipes, who only had a few credits under his belt previously. 

Patrick Swayze - "Rosanna"

Toto's song "Rosanna" is famously about Rosanna Arquette. Less well-known is that if you watch the video closely, you'll notice a familiar face as one of the West Side Story-like dancers. Patrick Swayze, one year before his big break in The Outsiders is one of the dancers. In an even cooler bit of trivia, another one of the uncredited dancers in the video is Cynthia Rhodes, who would co-star as Swayze's first dance partner, Penny, in Dirty Dancing. 

Elijah Wood - "Forever Your Girl"

Elijah Wood has been working in Hollywood forever. He started as a child actor in films like Back to the Future II and The Good Sun, but before those even, he had a part in Paula Abdul's video for "Forever Your Girl" in 1989. 

Chevy Chase - "You Can Call Me Al"

Chevy Chase was one of the biggest stars on the planet in 1986 when he starred in the video for "You Can Call Me Al" with his buddy Paul Simon. It is, no lie, one of Chase's best performances, and it's impossible not to crack up at his facial expressions and physical comedy in the video. 

Johnny Depp - "Into The Great Wide Open"

Johnny Depp has always wanted to be a rock star, so it was a great move by Tom Petty to get him to play the part of one in the video for "Into The Great Wide Open" in 1991. The video also stars the legendary Faye Dunaway and Gabrielle Anwar. 

Jennifer Connelly - "I Drove All Night"

The late, great Roy Orbison found almost as much fame after he died as he found in life. Two albums of all-new songs were released posthumously and one song, "I Drove All Night," released in 1992, featured Jennifer Connelly alongside Jason Priestly, in the video, along with Orbison in grainy images of an old TV appearance. 

Kirsten Dunst - "I Knew I Loved You"

Does anybody remember the band Savage Garden? The Aussie duo had a string of huge hits in the late '90s, including the song "I Knew I Loved You" which features Kirsten Dunst as a woman on a subway with whom the lead singer, Darren Hayes, is in love. 

Robin Williams - "Don't Worry, Be Happy"

Bobby McFerrin's 1988 song "Don't Worry, Be Happy" has to be one of the most surprising #1 hits of all time. The song was huge when it came out, and went on to win three Grammys. Someone must have had an inkling though, because superstar Robin Williams co-stars in the video with McFerrin. 

Kim Basinger - "Last Dance With Mary Jane"

Tom Petty made some legendary videos during his career, but the strangest has to be the one for "Last Dance With Mary Jane" which features Kim Basinger playing a corpse, dressed up as a bride. Great song, but a very weird video.

Keanu Reeves - "Rush, Rush"

1991 was a big year for Keanu Reeves. Not only did he star in Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey and Point Break, but he also appeared as a James Dean-like character in the video for "Rush, Rush" by Paula Abdul. 

Eddie Murphy - "Do You Remember The Time"

In case you've forgotten just how huge Michael Jackson was in the early '90s, remember there was a time he could premiere a video on MTV, BET, and Fox all at the same time. The video starred Jackson, of course, along with Eddie Murphy and Iman as ancient Egyptian royalty. Magic Johnson also appeared. 

Katie Holmes - "Tongue Tied"

Katie Holmes' career was just starting to take off in 1999 with her starring turn on Dawson's Creek. She also found some time to appear in the video for the song "Tongue Tied" by pop punk band Eve 6. It's not the last time Holmes has appeared in a video, either. A year later, in 2000, she starred with Micheal Douglas and others in a Bob Dylan video. 

Winona Ryder - "Debbie Gibson Is Pregnant with My Two-Headed Love Child"

By far the award for the strangest appearance on this list goes to Winona Ryder in the video for Mojo Nixon's song "Debbie Gibson Is Pregnant with My Two-Headed Love Child." Leave it to the late Nixon for coming up with the most ridiculous premise for a song, then landing a star like Ryder to star in the video in 1989, the same year she appeared in Heathers. 

RuPaul - "Love Shack"

If one were to guess which 1980s video to expect a RuPaul appearance, the smart money would be a B-52's video. That's exactly what happened in 1989 when RuPaul popped up very briefly in the video for "Love Shack" as a dancer and partygoer. He wasn't close to famous yet, but he was good friends with the band and he fits right into the campiness of the video. 

Benicio del Toro - "La Isla Bonita"

Benicio del Toro made his big screen debut in 1988 in Pee Wee's Big Top, but a year earlier, he was one of the extras in the video for Madonna's "La Isla Bonita." He is way in the background and can only be clearly seen in one shot, but when you watch the video, it's unmistakenly del Toro. 

Liv Tyler - "Crazy"

According to Liv Tyler, she didn't meet her biological father, Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler, until she was eight, and didn't know he was her father for another few years. Still, by the time she starred in the video for "Crazy," they had developed a healthy relationship, and the video, in which she co-stars with Alicia Silverstone, launched her career.

Captain Lou Albano - "Girls Just Want To Have Fun"

Cyndi Lauper was one of the biggest breakout stars of early MTV and for good reason. The low-budget video for her debut single, "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" featured a quirky cast that included her mother (playing her mother), her lawyer, and wrestling star "Captain" Lou Albano as her father. It's a video as fun as the song and it was played on repeat in those early MTV days. 

John Goodman - "Wild Wild Life"

The song "Wild Wild Life" by The Talking Heads was part of their soundtrack for the David Byrne-directed film True Stories. For the video, he recruited some of the people who appear in the film, including John Goodman, who lip-syncs along with the song in a karaoke bar. 

LeVar Burton - "Word Up"

LeVar Burton first found fame as Kunta Kinte in Roots, one of the most memorable performances by any actor, ever. About a decade later, between Roots and Star Trek: The Next Generation, Burton popped up in the video for "Word Up" by Cameo, playing a police officer trying to arrest the band. 

One video we left off this list because it's just too big a list on its own is the video for Ghostbusters which, in addition to the stars of the film also includes Chevy Chase, Danny Devito, Peter Falk, Al Franken, John Candy, and more. It's all too much to add to his list of some of the coolest appearances of stars in music videos! 

The top actors in Hollywood make a lot of money, but anyone will tell you that the real money is in production. That means that many of the biggest stars in the world have formed their own companies to produce both their own films and other projects that interest them. 

Often, these company names and logos appear at the beginning of the movies, along with larger, more recognizable studios like Paramount and Disney. Here is a list of many of the actors with their own production companies, along with the name of the company to look out for. 

Jordan Peele - Monkeypaw Productions

Jordan Peele has become one of the most exciting and interesting directors and producers in recent years. His Monkeypaw Productions has produced or co-produced his own movies, like Get Out, Us, and Nope, as well as other films like Spike Lee's BlacKkKlansman, and Adamma Ebo's Honk For Jesus, Save Your Soul.

Tom Hanks - Playtone

Tom Hanks' Playtone has been wildly successful on the big and small screens. With movies starring Hanks like Cast Away, Charlie Wilson's Way, The Polar Express, and Greyhound, as well as films not starring him, like Mamma Mia and its sequel, the company keeps winning. It has also hit it big on TV with shows like Band of Brothers, The Pacific, and John Adams on HBO, and the CNN series about each decade of the last 60 years. 

Elizabeth Banks - Brownstone Productions

Elizabeth Banks has been on a hot streak with her company Brownstone Productions. It's most notable for the Pitch Perfect franchise, but the company has also co-produced movies like 2019's Charlie's Angels, and that surprise 2023 hit about a bear that gets into something it should not have in the woods, with scary (and hilarious) results. 

Reese Witherspoon - Pacific Standard

When Reese Witherspoon started Pacific Standard in 2012, she did so with the express purpose of highlighting and producing projects with strong female leads, crews, and topics. So far, it's been a huge success with films like Gone Girl and Wild, as well as TV shows like The Morning Show, and Big Little Lies. 

Adam Sandler - Happy Madison Productions

Adam Sandler movies are not for everyone, but wow, do they make him a lot of money through his company, Happy Madison. Though the two films it's named after Happy Gilmore and Billy Madison were not his productions, almost everything he's been in since 2000 is, and it continues to make a ton of money for the actor. The company has even dabbled in TV, most notably with The Goldbergs.

Drew Barrymore - Flower Films

Drew Barrymore's company, Flower Films, has produced or co-produced a ton of movies since she founded it in 1999. With movies like Donnie Darko, 50 First Dates, Fever Pitch, and the Charlie's Angels franchise, it is safe to assume Barrymore has made a pretty penny. Of course, it also produces her daytime talk show, The Drew Barrymore Show. 

Queen Latifah - Flavor Unit Entertainment

Queen Latifah's Flavor Unit Entertainment started out producing movies with moderate budgets that she starred in, like The Cookout and Beauty Shop, but these days, it's been successful on TV with her show, The Equalizer.

George Clooney - Smokehouse Pictures

Smokehouse Pictures is the second company founded by George Clooney after he shut down Section Eight Productions in 2006. Most movies he's starred in or directed since 2008 have been produced under the Smokehouse banner, including Leatherheads, Monuments Men, and The Boys In The Boat, plus other projects like Ocean's 8 and Argo.

Sandra Bullock - Fortus Films

Sandra Bullock may not be acting as much these days, but her production company, Fortus Films, is still humming along. Through the company, Bullock has produced movies like Miss Congeniality and its sequel, Two Weeks Notice, and The Lost City.

Courteney Cox - Coquette Productions

Friends star Courteney Cox and her ex-husband David Arquette started Coquette Productions together in 2004. The business relationship continued after the couple split six years later, though they haven't actually produced much in recent years. 

Brad Pitt - Plan B Entertainment

Plan B Entertainment was started by Brad Pitt, Jennifer Aniston, and producer Brad Grey in 2001. In 2004, Pitt and Grey bought Aniston out in the midst of her split from Pitt. Since then, the company has gone on to major success, with three of its movies, The Departed, 12 Years a Slave and Moonlight all winning Best Picture Oscars, with seven others receiving nominations for the award. 

Sterling K. Brown - Indian Meadows Productions

This Is Us star Sterling K. Brown named his production Indian Meadows Productions after the name of the neighborhood he grew up in outside St. Louis. Though it's just getting started, there are some interesting things on the way as Brown's star continues to shine brightly. 

Margot Robbie - LuckyChap Productions

Margot Robbie may have gotten snubbed at the 2024 Oscars for Barbie, but you can be sure she wasn't snubbed out of money as one of the producers of the hit movie. Robbie's company, LuckyChap Productions, has also produced movies Robbie starred in like I, Tonya and Birds of Prey as well as other projects she didn't star in like Saltburn and Promising Young Woman.

Leonardo DiCaprio - Appian Way Productions

Leonardo DiCaprio's Appian Way Productions produced two Oscar-winners with The Aviator (which won five) and The Revenant (which won three, including Best Actor for DiCaprio). Through the company, DiCaprio not only produced feature films, but documentaries, as well. 

Nicole Kidman - Blossom Films

While Nicole Kidman's Blossom Films has dabbled in movies, most notably the 2011 rom-com Monte Carlo with Selena Gomez, it has found its biggest successes on the small screen. With shows like Big Little Lies, The Undoing, Nine Perfect Strangers, and 2024's Expats. 

Michael Douglas

Further Films, founded by Michael Douglas, doesn't have the portfolio that others may have on this list, as they seem to have found a niche in thrillers and suspense films like Swimfan, Don't Say a Word, 2017's Flatliners, and the streaming show Ratched.

Natalie Portman - Handsomecharlie Films

Natalie Portman named her company, Handsomecharlie Films, after her beloved dog, and she's put together a nice run of movies. She's produced many of her own projects, like No Strings Attached and Jane Got a Gun, as well as a surprise that she didn't star in, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. 

Eddie Murphy - Eddie Murphy Productions

Eddie Murphy started betting on himself early in his career through Eddie Murphy Productions and it has paid off, big time. Starting with Raw in 1987, the company has produced some huge movies for the legendary comedian, including Coming To America, Harlem Nights, Boomarang, The Nutty Professor, and Norbit. 

Barbra Streisand - Barwood Films

Barbra Streisand has produced many of her own projects through her company, Barwood Films. 1976's A Star Is Born, The Prince Of Tides, and Yentl are a few of the examples of her biggest successes. Barwood has also dabbled in TV movies, like the groundbreaking What Makes a Family in 2001, about a lesbian couple having a child together. 

Alec Baldwin - El Dorado Pictures

Alec Baldwin's El Dorado Pictures has been in the news a lot in recent years due to its connection to Rust and the tragic events that occurred on set. Baldwin has produced quite a few of his own projects through the company over the years and even got into the TV game show space with the revival of Match Game, which he also hosted. 

Tina Fey - Little Stranger

Tina Fey has one of the sharpest wits in Hollywood, so it's no surprise she would use those same brains to produce. From critically acclaimed movies like 2024's Mean Girls to wildly successful TV shows including 30 Rock and The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Fey, and her company Little Stranger, continue to crush it. 

Laurence Fishburne - Cinema Gypsy Productions

The biggest success Laurence Fishburne and his company Cinema Gypsy Productions has seen thus far is the sitcom black-ish, but he's also produced some great movies of his own that have flown under the radar, but are worth checking out, in Five Fingers and Akeelah and the Bee.

Jodie Foster - Egg Pictures

It's no surprise that an actor and director like Jodie Foster, who has been in show business for basically all of her life, would be a producer as well. Through her Egg Pictures production company, she produced many of her own projects, starting with Nell in 1994 and Home for the Holidays in 1995. She closed the company in 2002 when she decided that producing wasn't for her. 

Clint Eastwood - Malpaso Films

Without question, one of the most successful companies on this list is Malpaso Films, founded by Clint Eastwood. It has served as the production company for almost all of the films Eastwood has directed and its history stretches back to the mid-1960s. Many of his classic films, including Unforgiven, The Bridges of Madison County, The Outlaw Josey Wales, Dirty Harry, Escape from Alcatraz, Million Dollar Baby, Sully, and many more have all been produced or co-produced by Malpaso. 

Halle Berry - 606 Films

Halle Berry's 606 Films has an interesting origin story. Though it was formed as part of her deal to star in Extant, the name has an important meaning. She named it after CA Senate Bill 606, a law intended to protect celebrities' children from the paparazzi.

It was an important issue for Berry, and when the company was formed, her partner, Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas, said, "606 Films is named for the anti-paparazzi bill, Senate Bill 606, which Halle fought so hard for and won, when no one believed it could be achieved. It truly informs the spirit of our company — making dreams possible, one bill at a time."

Mel Gibson - Icon Productions

Mel Gibson is not the most universally loved man in Hollywood, to be sure, but he's often bet on himself with his Icon Films, and more times than not, it's worked. Since 1989, he's financed many of his own projects completely through Icon, making movies like Hacksaw Ridge, The Passion of the Christ, and We Were Soldiers, plus co-producing maybe his most iconic movie, Braveheart. 

Salma Hayek - Ventanarosa Productions

Ventanarosa Productions, founded by Salma Hayek in 1999 has most often focused on Latin-centric projects, including Hayek's own Frida and the hit TV show, Ugly Betty. Ventanarosa also works throughout Latin America, producing Spanish-language films and TV. 

Will Smith - Overbrook Entertainment

Will Smith grew up in the West Philly neighborhood of Overbrook, which he took for the name of his production company as well, Overbrook Entertainment. Through it, Smith has produced many of his own projects, starting with Ali in 2001. King Richard, for which he infamously won the Oscar for Best Actor in 2022, was also produced by Overbrook. On the small screen, the Netflix hit Cobra Kai is an Overbrook production, as well. 

Amy Poehler - Paper Kite Productions

Amy Poehler's Paper Kite Production has dabbled in movies, but most of its success has been on TV and streaming. With shows like Russian Doll, and Broad City, you can see that Poehler likes sticking with what she knows, comedy. You might be surprised, though, that the company has also found success with reality TV and even feature length documentaries.

Danny DeVito - Jersey Films

Danny DeVito is obviously proud of his New Jersey roots, naming his production company Jersey Films. He also has to be proud of the output from the company with films like Pulp Fiction and Get Shorty. He's found a lot of success on TV too, with Reno 911! Another of Jersey's films, Erin Brockovich, was nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards in 2001.

Charlize Theron - Denver And Delilah Productions

Denver and Delilah Productions' first film was Monster, starring the company's founder, Charlize Theron. That seems to have inspired a bit of a theme, as the company has produced other serial killer-related projects, like Netflix's show Mindhunters, and the HBO docuseries Last Call: When a Serial Killer Stalked Queer New York. There are also a few non-serial killer films, like Bombshell, Atomic Blonde, and Murder Mystery.

Will Ferrell - Gary Sanchez Productions

Before Adam McKay and Will Ferrell had their falling out in 2019 and dissolved Gary Sanchez Productions, the company had been wildly successful, releasing some of the funniest movies and shows over the last couple of decades. Step Brothers, Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues, Daddy's Home, Eastbound & Down, and Drunk History are just a few examples. Add to that a little HBO show called Succession, which has won just a few Emmys, and wow, what a success story. 

As this list shows, success as an actor often leads to success in production as well, so actors will continue to open up their own shops, and will continue to crush it, for sure. 

The “will they, won’t they” trope refers to when a TV show traces the blossoming romance of two central characters — such as Jim and Pam from the U.S. version of The Office cast or the two original lead Cheers characters, Sam and Diane. But, what about the characters who led a major storyline that involved the end of their relationship and, more specifically, the end of a marriage? We thought we would give some of the most iconic divorced TV characters their due by highlighting our favorites below.

Ross Gellar (Friends)

The ultimate TV divorcee — in sitcoms, at least — is easily Ross Gellar (David Schwimmer), who is splitting from his first wife, Carol, in the Friends pilot. In Season 4, his marriage to Emily Waltham (Helen Baxendale) is ruined during the ceremony because of his oft-debated history with Rachel (Jennifer Aniston), who later becomes his third wife by a drunken mistake in Vegas. 

Joyce Byers (Stranger Things)

Before Joyce Byers (Winona Ryder) and the rest of the Stranger Things cast faced off against Demagorgons and other creatures, she had another monster to contend with: her husband. The selfish, deceitful, and abusive Lonnie (Ross Partridge) did not even care about the disappearance of his own son, Will (Noah Schnapp), in Season 1 of the Netflix sci-fi drama and blamed Joyce, who eventually — and quite thankfully — found romance with longtime friend, Jim Hopper (David Harbour).

Don Draper (Mad Men)

The seemingly picture-perfect union of Don Draper and Betty Hofstadt (Mad Men cast members Jon Hamm and January Jones) came to an end by the AMC period drama’s fourth season after unsuccessful attempts to reconcile amid each other’s affairs. However, it was not the ad executive’s last or even first marriage. Previously, his union with Anna Draper (Melinda Page Hamilton) — widow of the man whose identity he stole — was annulled and he and his third wife, Megan Calvet (Jessica Pare), began to grow apart in the penultimate season.

Reba Hart (Reba)

One of the best country music singers-turned-actors, Reba McEntire, became sitcom royalty with her Golden Globe-nominated performance as the lead of her own comedy on The WB (and, later, The CW). Lasting six seasons, Reba was the story of a Southern single mother of three struggling to maintain a relationship with her ex-husband (played by Christopher Rich) and the woman he left her for (Melissa Peterman). Luckily, as the theme song says, she’s a survivor.

Seong Gi-hun (Squid Game)

In one of the best Netflix TV shows, Squid Game, the central protagonist Seong Gi-hun (Emmy winner Lee Jung-jae) chooses to leave for the deadly tournament after surviving the first round. But, after learning that his daughter is about to move to the United States with his ex-wife and her new husband, which is what convenes him to reenter the games. However, in the Season 1 finale, he ditches his chance to reconnect with his daughter in favor of taking down the tournament, which we will see playing when Season 2 of the South Korean hit premieres.

Frasier Crane (Cheers, Frasier)

On Cheers, Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammer) meets and eventually weds fellow psychiatrist, Lilith (Bebe Neuwirth). After she left him for another man before later pleading reconciliation, the long-running series ended with their marriage facing an uncertain fate. When Frasier’s self-titled spin-off premiered, it was revealed that he had left for good before packing up for Seattle, where they would sometimes reunite, including on Paramount+’s revival series in 2023.

Toby Flenderson (The Office)

The HR representative at Dunder-Mifflin’s Scranton branch, Toby Flenderson (The Office writer Paul Lieberstein), is divorced — a fact his self-described enemy, branch manager Michael Scott (Steve Carell), often uses to taunt him. Toby and his ex-wife had a daughter named Sasha (Delaney Ruth Farrell), whom we meet in one of the most cringe-worthy episodes of The Office, “Take Your Daughter to Work Day.”

Dorothy Zbornak (The Golden Girls)

What led Dorothy Zbornak (Bea Arthur) to move in with her mother, Sophia (Estelle Getty), Blanche (Rue McClanahan), and Rose (Betty White) is her split from Stan (Herb Edelman). Nonetheless, Dorothy’s ex-husband would remain a recurring staple of The Golden Girls, and the former spouses’ lasting, yet imperfect, affection for one another made for a uniquely charming pair.

Bobby And Pam Ewing (Dallas)

The only thing as captivating as the mystery of who shot J.R. Ewing (Larry Hagman) on Dallas was the marriage of Bobby Ewing (Patrick Duffy) to Pamela (Victoria Principal), who comes from the rival Barnes family. The Romeo and Juliet-style romance which turned many against them was initially the central focus of the primetime soap (one of the most popular TV shows of its time), until the couple ended up turning against each other.

Kirk And Luann Van Houten (The Simpsons)

In Season 3 of The Simpsons, we meet Milhouse’s parents, Kirk (Hank Azaria) — one of the most popular Simpsons characters to enter the series late — and Luann Van Houten (Maggie Roswell). In Season 8 — after a disastrous game of Pictionary at Homer and Marge’s dinner party — the couple called it quits and Kirk’s many efforts to salvage their union — including penning a song called “Can I Borrow a Feeling” — could not redeem it, unfortunately.

Grace Adler (Will & Grace)

Interior designer Grace Adler (Will & Grace cast member Debra Messing) almost got married in the pilot before finally finding her match in Dr. Leo Marcus (Harry Connick, Jr.), until his one-night-stand on a Cambodian Doctors Without Borders assignment ruined things. While they managed to work things out, remarry, and raise their daughter together in the finale, the 2017 revival series (which ignores the previous series’ ender) reveals that Grace, unable to trust Leo for his past mistake, left him again.

Michael And Jane Mancini (Melrose Place)

At the beginning of Melrose Place, the heart and soul of the Beverly Hills, 90210 spin-off was surgeon Michael (Thomas Calabro) and fashion designer Jane Mancini (Josie Bissett). However, by Season 2, Michael’s suddenly villainous transformation — complete with a terrible attitude and adulterous habits — saw the end of the marriage.

Matt Foley (Saturday Night Live)

When Chris Farley’s most famous SNL character, Matt Foley, made his SNL debut — in a beloved sketch written by Bob Odenkirk — the motivational speaker provided three important facts about his life: he is 35, divorced, and lives in a van down by the river. In subsequent editions of the bit, we learn he has actually been married “thrice” and even winds up in jail for failing to pay alimony at one point.

Cleveland Brown (Family Guy)

One of the funniest Family Guy characters, Cleveland Brown (Arif Zahir, who replaced Mike Henry) was married to Loretta (Alex Borstein) until she was caught cheating with Quagmire (Seth MacFarlane). When he got his own spin-off, The Cleveland Show, he reunited with his childhood friend and secret crush, Donna Tubbs (Sanaa Lathan), and his dreams came true when they married.

Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm)

After years of putting up with the neurotic and selfish behavior of her husband, Larry David (creator Larry David), the final straw for Cheryl (Cheryl Hines) came late in Curb Your Enthusiasm’s sixth season when he was too preoccupied with a TiVo installer to comfort her during a turbulent flight over the phone. Larry would later attempt a few schemes to win her back, including casting her as the wife of a character he inspired, George Costanza (Jason Alexander), for an in-show Seinfeld cast reunion special. 

Alan Harper (Two And A Half Men)

Initially, the premise of the long-running CBS sitcom, Two and a Half Men, saw Charlie Harper (Charlie Sheen) reluctantly take in his brother, Alan (Jon Cryer), and nephew, Jake (Angus T. Jones), after Alan’s wife, Judith (Marin Hinkle) kicks him out. Alan later meets and marries the young, ditzy Kandi (April Bowlby) in an impromptu ceremony, but she splits with him because of — as it is eventually revealed — their differing opinions on having children… and his ear, nose, and chest hair.

Selina Meyer (Veep)

For, just about, the entire duration of their 12-year marriage, Andrew Meyer (David Pasquesi) cheated on his wife, Selina (Emmy winner Julia Louis-Dreyfus) almost constantly. Still, upon their reunion on Veep — a show Parks and Rec fans will love —  the attraction between them remains strong, which results in some increasingly ridiculous hijinks behind the scenes of Selina’s political career.

Lucious And Cookie Lyon (Empire)

We learn at the beginning of Empire that Lucious Lyon (Terrence Howard) divorced Cookie (Taraji P. Henson) while she was still in prison — kicking off a volatile personal and professional relationship between the music industry magnates upon her release. While they would remarry in Season 4, the sixth and final season began with them separated before, eventually, finalizing their second split.

Maura And Shelly Pfefferman (Transparent)

At the beginning of Amazon’s Emmy-winning dramedy, Transparent, Maura Pfefferman (Jeffrey Tambor) — then known as “Morton” — revealed to her wife, Shelley (Judith Light) that she was transgender, Shelley could not accept this news and opted to split up. Eventually, however, despite a brief chance at rekindling their romance, they prove to be much stronger friends.

Jules Cobb (Cougar Town)

After the series finale, Friends cast member Courteney Cox’s most successful follow-up was an ABC (later TBS) original sitcom called Cougar Town. She played Jules Cobb: a single, forty-something mother to Travis (Dan Byrd) — whom she had with ex-husband, Bobby (Brian Van Holt) — who eventually remarries when she falls for her neighbor, Grayson Ellis (Josh Hopkins).

Lou Grant (The Mary Tyler Moore Show)

One of the first TV characters depicted as a divorcé was Lou Grant, portrayed by the late Ed Asner to multi-Emmy-winning acclaim on The Mary Tyler Moore and on his more dramatic self-titled spin-off. The TV news producer’s marriage to Edie (Priscilla Morrill) ends roughly halfway through the series, but they remain in touch and Lou even attends Edie’s nuptials to Howard Gordon.

Erica Kane (All My Children)

One of the most notorious divorcés in TV history is Erica Kane, played by the legendary Susan Lucci on All My Children. Over the course of four decades on the ABC daytime soap opera, the businesswoman was seen tying the knot a staggering eleven times.

Angela Bower (Who's The Boss?)

Years before Judith Light portrayed a divorcé on Transparent, she played single mother Angela Bower on the hit ABC sitcom, Who’s the Boss? The advertising executive would eventually find love again with her widowed live-in housekeeper, Tony Micelle (Tony Danza).

Rhoda Morgenstern (Rhoda)

When Valerie Harper left the Mary Tyler Moore Show to star in her own spin-off, Rhoda, the title character would meet and marry a divorced man named Joe Gerard (David Groh). Their relationship would only last a couple more years and we discovered much later in a 2000 TV movie called Mary and Rhoda that she found a new French husband named Jean-Pierre Rousseau, but that marriage did not last either.

Niles Crane (Frasier)

Arguably the funniest recurring gag in Frasier is that Niles Crane’s (David Hyde Pierce) wife, Maris, is never once seen — due to the characters’ increasingly bizarre descriptions making her impossible to cast — even after their marriage falls apart in Season 4. Thankfully, Niles would later fall in love with his brother’s housekeeper, Daphne (Jane Leeves).

Angela Martin (The Office)

After her engagement to Andy Bernard (Ed Helms) ends due to her affair with Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson), Angela Martin’s (Angela Kinsey) marriage to state senator Robert Lipton (Jack Coleman) ends due to his affair with Oscar Martinez (Oscar Nunez) in the final season of The Office. Soon after, she and Dwight finally and openly admit their love for each other and wed in the series finale, which actually counts as their second after Dwight fooled her into a marriage while she was still engaged to Andy.

Alexis Morrell (Dynasty)

Much of the most intense drama on the long-running primetime soap opera, Dynasty — which was later rebooted for The CW — stemmed from the relationship between former spouses Alexis Morrell (Joan Collins) and Blake Carrington (John Forsyth). The marriage was actually the first of four for the socialite, who also went on to marry Cecil Colby, Dex Dexter, and Sean Rowan.

Bill Dauterive (King Of The Hill)

For all 13 seasons of King of the Hill, Bill Dauterive (voiced by Stephen Root) never quite got over his ex-wife, Leonare (Ellen Barkin). There was a time in Season 5 when he had a chance at finding love again with former Texas governor Ann Richards (voicing herself), which ultimately went nowhere, but was almost ruined by one of Leonare’s schemes.

Mike and Gloria Stivic (All In The Family)

The conservative Archie Bunker (Carroll O’Connor) would constantly butt heads with the more liberal Mike Stivic (future filmmaker Rob Reiner), who was married to his daughter, Gloria. However, by the end of the groundbreaking run of All in the Family, the couple separated. Archie initially assumed it was by Mike’s doing, until Gloria admitted to her own infidelity.

Mr. Big (Sex And The City)

The classic “will they, won’t they” relationship between Carrie Bradshaw (Sex and the City cast lead Sarah Jessica Parker) and John James “Mr. Big” Preston (Chris Noth), would eventually result in marriage (until his death, as revealed in the sequel series, And Just Like That…), which was the entrepreneur’s third. He was previously married to a woman named Barbara and, during a time when he and Carrie were apart, married a younger woman named Natasha (Bridget Moynahan).

Louie (Louie)

Much like in real life, Louis C.K.’s fictionalized version of himself in the acclaimed FX series, Louie, is a divorced comedian. In fact, one of its sharpest elements is its almost tragically hilarious depiction of single parenthood from his perspective.

Henry VIII (The Tudors)

Borrowed straight from the history books, Showtime’s The Tudors incorporates a truly heinous depiction of a marriage ending. Because divorce is against her religion, Catherine (Maria Doyle Kennedy) has her marriage to King Henry VIII (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) annulled due to his obsession with Anne Boleyn (Natalie Dormer). As a result, she is exiled. 

Breaking up is hard to do, but in the case of these divorced characters, it made for great television.

Weeks ago, the world sadly lost actor and comedian Matthew Perry, who died at 54 after being found unresponsive in his hot tub on October 28. Tributes for the beloved star have since poured in from fans and celebrities alike. Of course, many were most interested in hearing from his fellow Friends cast members. In time, Perry’s co-stars released a joint statement in which they lamented his passing, and they’re now starting to share their own personal recollections of him. Jennifer Aniston and David Schwimmer are the latest to do so, as they penned emotional tributes to their friend and colleague after Courteney Cox shared a message of her own. 

Jennifer Aniston did not hold back when taking to Instagram to share her thoughts on her longtime colleague’s death. The Rachel Green actress' post included a long caption, in which she made note of the “insane wave of emotions” she’s been feeling. She also explained how sitting in grief has allowed her to experience the “moments of joy and gratitude for having loved someone that deep.” The Emmy winner eventually went on to discuss how her late friend used to love to make people laugh. You can see Aniston's message in its entirety down below as well as a sweet photo, text and a notable clip from the show featuring their characters:

That tribute was emotional enough, but David Schwimmer’s is also enough to evoke a tear or two. In addition to sharing an A+ snapshot of his Ross Geller and Matthew Perry’s Chandler Bing, Schwimmer recalled his co-star’s comedic talents as well as his warm heart. Schwimmer said it was Perry’s kindness and generosity that allowed the cast to “create a family out of six strangers.” And what was particularly sweet is that the actor finished his eulogy with an A+ joke that would make Perry (and Chandler) proud:

Lisa Kudrow, the actress who so brilliantly played Phoebe Buffay for 10 seasons, sung the Fools Rush In star's praises as well. She took to Instagram to drop a vintage photo of her and her co-star as well as some sweet words of thanks. She expressed gratitude to the late actor for his ability to make people laugh, his "open heart" and dedication to his job even amid his addiction struggles. The post can be found below:

Courteney Cox (who played Monica Geller) also got sentimental while remembering her faux husband on Instagram. The relationship between Monica and Chandler was incredibly special to fans, and Cox’s post summed it up perfectly. She expressed her gratitude over having been able to work with her former co-star and also shared a clip. The snippet of footage is the famous moment the couple’s tryst in London was revealed. Take a look for yourself down below:

This trio of stars aren't the only veterans from Friends (which is available for Max subscribers) to speak out about the 17 Again alum individually. Lead cast member and Joey Tribbiani portrayer Matt LeBlanc previously shared a tribute that included some sweet and nostalgic photos. In the caption of his Instagram post, LeBlanc also reflected on the good times he had while working with the man who played his character’s best pal. Series guest stars Selma Blair and Paget Brewster also paid their respects with beautiful messages.

The sheer amount of love Matthew Perry has received over these past few weeks has been nothing short of heartwarming. It’s honestly still somewhat surreal knowing that he’s no longer with us. However, Perry’s greatest TV and theatrical works -- including the Friends episodes that could make anyone a Perry fan -- will absolutely continue to be enjoyed for years to come, and it seems evident that the bond he shared with Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer and the rest of his co-stars will stand the test of time. 

We here at CinemaBlend continue to extend our condolences to the family and loved ones of Matthew Perry.

Recent weeks have been especially tough for Friends’ former cast and crew members, not to mention the fandom at large, due to the unforeseen and sudden death of co-star Matthew Perry, who accidentally drowned at age 54. Those with Max subscriptions have been streaming episodes in memory of the comedic actor, and it turns out one of the NBC sitcom’s most memorable two-episode arcs nearly featured a total deal-breaking moment involving Chandler cheating on Monica, which I have to assume would have caused fans to riot.

This unexpectedly golden morsel of Friends trivia comes from Lisa Cash, an actress who appeared in a guest-starring capacity in the Season 5 episode “The One in Vegas: Part 1.” While viewers would presumably recognize her as the flight attendant during Ross and Rachel’s flight scenes, she was originally going to play a hotel employee who could have potentially been the “copy girl” of Monica and Chandler’s relationship. Here’s how Cash put it to TMZ: 

Considering all the booze-fueled wackiness and more that went on during the two-part Vegas excursion — “This hand is your hand. This hand is my hand.” — it wouldn’t have been so out of place for Friends to drop a bombshell relationship moment like that on Chandler and Monica, especially as a way to balance the unexpected togetherness of Ross and Rachel’s drunken, ink-faced nuptials. And it would have made enough sense in the moment for Matthew Perry’s character to make such a dunderheaded decision as a reaction to his innate discomfort over Courteney Cox’s Monica having secret conversations with Tom Selleck’s Richard.

But it was Perry himself who apparently stepped up behind the scenes and voiced his concern about his character engaging in such debaucherous behavior, which Lisa Cash discovered the day before shooting for the episode was set to commence. She continued:

Though I know there are fans who disliked Chandler and Monica’s courtship and probably would have cheered on any amount of infidelity that would lead to a break-up, I’m thankful that storyline didn’t come to life, especially at that middle point in the show's run. For one, it would have been a little too close to Ross and Rachel's "on a break" debate, even with the minor differences. And for another, it might have completely thrown the character dynamics off throughout Season 6 and possibly beyond to have Chandler and Monica at odds, presumably with side-romances being attempted in the meantime. 

Matthew Perry, who arguably knew Chandler Bing better than anyone else, clearly didn't want Friends' creative team to drive this kind of wedge between the characters, and it's awesome that his opinions were heard, respected, and acted upon. And I can only imagine that Lisa Cash avoided years of hate mail from fans who would have been angry at her character for being the wedge that could have split Chandler and Monica up. 

If only there was a Sliding Doors scenario that allowed fans to see where Friends would have gone had the cheating sitch played out in full. Alas, we'll have to make do with the ten largely wonderful seasons that were produced.

In the beginning, the cast of Friends reportedly made $22,500 per episode, by the end all six actors famously had astounding salaries of $1 million per episode. However, at one point, all of these stars were not set to make the same amount of money. It turns out that David Schwimmer and Jennifer Aniston actually played a big role in helping the ensemble eventually get to their gigantic paydays, as the late Matthew Perry revealed in his book. 

As many reflect on and pay tribute to Matthew Perry, including his fellow Friends alums, discussions about the legacy of Friends and just how popular it was (and still is) have been reignited. Along with that, the crew’s famously high salaries have been explained, and thanks to the Chandler actor’s book, it’s also been revealed how the crew was able to stand together, and make it so they were all paid equally. 

David Schwimmer Had The Idea For The Cast To Negotiate Salaries As A Group 

In Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing, Perry wrote about how the Ross Geller actor was considered the big star of the show. However, instead of taking a larger raise than his co-stars, Schwimmer approached the cast and proposed the idea that they all negotiate their salaries as a unit. 

After Season 1 of Friends, as reported in The Guardian, David Schwimmer and Jennifer Aniston were earning more than Perry, Matt LeBlanc, Lisa Kudrow and Courteney Cox because of the buzz around Ross and Rachel’s relationship. When Season 3 rolled around, Schwimmer asked Aniston if she’d be willing to take a pay cut, so all six members of the ensemble could receive equal pay. In his memoir (via The Guardian), the Chandler Bing actor gave big props to his co-star for making this choice, as he wrote:

Later on, Perry wrote about how grateful he was to Schwimmer and that decision made during the early seasons of Friends. He explained:

In the end, the cast went on to famously make $1 million per episode during the last two years of the show. Series co-creator Marta Kauffman called the salaries “ridiculous.” However, considering how beloved the show was, and how much appreciation there still is for the series, it seems like it was worth every penny to pay all six actors so much.  

By The Last Seasons, The Friends Cast Was Making $1 Million Per Episode 

By the time Friends entered into its later seasons, the cast had become bonafide superstars, and the show had been a pop culture phenomenon for years. In an interview with the Huffington Post Matt LeBlanc commented on how the ensemble ended up making $1 million per episode, saying:

The Joey Tribbiani actor went on to say that if anyone is in a position to get a raise, and they don’t, they’re “stupid.” He then explained that he and his castmates were “in a position” where they could “pull it off,” so they did. 

By the end of its run, the stars of the hit sitcom were making $1,100,040 per episode, and it was in big part thanks to David Schwimmer and Jennifer Aniston deciding to take a pay cut early on and stand in solidarity with their colleagues. To this day, the Friends cast still makes money in royalties, and the story of their incredible salaries is legendary.

To go back and watch all eight seasons of Friends, all you need is a Max subscription. 

The Friends cast lost a member with the passing of Matthew Perry at the age of 54 at his home on October 28. He played Chandler Bing through ten seasons of the beloved comedy, alongside Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, and David Schwimmer. Now, two days after the sad news, his former castmates have joined together with a touching message about their friend. 

In a joint statement (via People), the surviving members of the Friends cast said:

The message from the five stars follows guest stars like Selma Blair and Paget Brewster speaking out about Matthew Perry, and establishes that this will not be the only time that Aniston, Cox, Kudrow, LeBlanc, and Schwimmer address the tragedy. The sad news comes just over two years after the six leads came together for Friends: The Reunion.

When Perry's death was first reported, it was said that he drowned in his jacuzzi following cardiac arrest, with no drugs or foul play involved. The sitcom legend had been open about health struggles in the past, including an accident when he was given 2% chance of survival and his addictions throughout the seasons of Friends. He credited Jennifer Aniston for reaching out to him.

In his memoir that released almost exactly one year prior to his death, Perry also expressed that he hoped Friends was not remembered as his biggest accomplishment in life, as (via The Wrap) he "did try to help other people." He wrote that "the best thing about me is if an alcoholic or drug addict comes up to me and says, 'Will you help me?'" According to the actor, his response was always "'Yes, I know how to do that.'" That could involve helping in a group setting, or one on one. 

For their part, Friends co-creators Marta Kauffman and David Crane, along with former executive producer Kevin Bright, commended Perry for his performances as Chandler Bing was well as what he brought to the show with his personality behind-the-scenes. In a joint statement (via People) on October 29, they said: 

Matthew Perry was clearly beloved for his work on screen as well as his presence and personality off-screen, and fans have been posting messages of their own on social media ever since the news broke. TBS is running a marathon of episodes that showcase his character from November 1 - November 5. Our thoughts here at CinemaBlend are with the family, friends, and loved ones of Perry in this difficult time.

If you want to engage a Friends fan in a passionate debate, ask them if Ross and Rachel were on a break, or if Monica and Chandler were better off not together. But if you really want to get under their skin, throw out the audacious claim that the iconic sitcom isn’t even funny. X CEO Elon Musk poured fuel on that fire in one of his recent posts, and while I get that Friends isn’t everyone’s cup of tea (or rather, Central Perk coffee), I’m a little surprised at how many haters there are for a decades-old TV show.

For seemingly no reason at all, Elon Musk decided to get people all riled up with what I would have imagined was an unpopular opinion on one of the most beloved sitcoms of all time (and yes, as a Friends fan myself, I am a little biased in calling it that, but also, it is objectively true). The billionaire posted: 

It’s actually not surprising that a man worth hundreds of billions of dollars doesn’t relate to six 20-somethings who are barely scraping by in 1990s New York City. Rachel and Monica’s apartment would actually cost way more than Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox’s characters could afford at an estimated $6,500 a month, but that’s likely pocket change to the SpaceX founder.

Turns out, though, it’s not just billionaires who don’t find Friends funny, as more than 700,000 X users liked the post, and plenty of them weighed in with their own opinions of the show. The comments included: 

• Friends is one of the least funny shows out there. Take away the laughing track and the ‘humour’ goes with it – THOMP_edits
• Never got the appeal at the time. Still don't get it now. – TheCriticalDri2
• Searching high and low, and yet struggling to find someone who genuinely enjoyed 'Friends'? What does that say about the show's so-called 'popularity'? – Michael73561485
• I don't think anyone actually enjoyed watching Friends – Biscuitsbubble
• Indeed. Friends was boring and pointless. I couldn't stand watching for more than ten minutes. The overall idea revolved around attempts to come up with half-decent jokes, and the situations presented were entirely uninteresting. – Panterabch

Although I admit to being one of “those” die-hard Friends fans who has seen every episode multiple times, I am not unreasonable, and I agree there are valid arguments to be made about the sitcom, especially when it comes to the series’ lack of diversity. That’s not new, and the cast and crew have even copped to it. 

Also, it’s been 29 years since Friends premiered, and comedy has evolved a ton since 1994. I honestly don’t know how I’d feel about it either, if I were to watch it for the first time today. However, to suggest that people who actually enjoyed the sitcom don’t exist is simply ridiculous.

Elon Musk and everyone else are absolutely entitled to their opinion, and obviously if they think Friends isn’t funny, I assume no one’s forcing them to watch it. I would just say that the fact that Musk is even bringing it up, and there is debate over whether or not it’s worth watching — nearly two decades after its final episode aired on NBC — only proves its pop culture relevance. 

If you do want to watch (or rewatch) Friends, all 10 seasons are available to stream with a Max subscription. 

My all-time favorite episode of Friends, and I think this is the case for many, is “The One With The Embryos” from Season 4. While it’s named after the storyline regarding Phoebe and her pregnancy, the part of the episode that sticks with me is the silly trivia contest that led to Chandler and Joey switching apartments with Monica and Rachel after they made a bet. It’s a hilarious game of whits that leads to one of the most jarring and hysterical plot points when the boys join the list of people to live in Monica’s apartment, and the story behind how this episode came to be makes it even better. 

The Trivia Contest Was Born Out Of An Effort To Save Money And The Pad O’ Guys 

Sometimes the best ideas are born out of limitations, and that’s exactly what happened with this episode of Friends. In an oral history about “The One with the Embryos” for TV Guide, executive producer and director Kevin S. Bright opened up about how the idea for the trivia contest, and ultimately trading apartments, came to be. He said:

Amy Toomin Straus, a co-producer and co-writer on the episode, then said the writers were told that if they could get the entire cast of Friends in one room, “it’s like magic.” So, that’s essentially what they did. This led to Seth Kurland, another co-producer and writer, explaining how he came up with the idea for the trivia game Ross moderates and Chandler, Monica, Rachel and Joey play. He said:

So, the idea for the trivia game, which led to some of the most iconic quotes from Friends that fans still reference – “Miss Chanandler Bong” and “That’s not even a word!” are staples in my vocabulary – came from an effort to cut costs and a random story about a few of the writers. That alone makes this episode even, better, but there is more to how this hilarious story, and the eventual apartment switch, came together. 

The Friends Crew Fully Decided To Commit To The Bit Of Switching Apartments

One of the reasons this storyline works so well, and is my favorite, is because the cast and crew fully committed to the bit. The exaggerated reactions the girls have to getting questions wrong, Ross’s seriousness as the game show host, and the boys’ glee about winning all come together to make a gloriously hilarious episode that culminates in one of the best and most unique bits of the show: they switch apartments. 

David Crane, the show’s co-creator and executive producer, explained why they decided to not just make the apartment switch a gag, and actually go through with the flip to TV Guide, saying:

I’m so happy they owned it! The bit was truly hysterical, and the creativity behind it, plus the dedication to pulling it off is one of the many reasons why Friends is one of the best ‘90s sitcoms. Seeing all the boys' furniture in the girls' apartment was so jarring, especially against those purple walls, and the same can be said about Monica and Rachel moving into Chandler and Joey’s place. Greg J. Grande, the set decorator, explained why just the set changes made the sequence so funny, and it makes complete sense. He said:

John Shaffner, a production designer, also weighed in on the set decisions made to pull off the apartment switch, and he noted how it feels like the boys are “trespassing” when they move in. That feeling of misplacement really makes the entire situation wild, and incredibly funny. He said:

I think one of the reasons this episode is a favorite of mine comes down to how goofy the premise is. I feel like my friends and I would totally do a trivia game like this, and place a funky bet on it. However, I’m not sure if we’d go through with it. The fact that the Friends actually switched apartments, and this bottle episode became the biggest gag of Season 4, is a major reason why it’s not only hysterical but truly legendary.  

The one with the trivia contest, the switching of apartments, and the embryos is a top-tier episode of Friends. Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry and David Schwimmer gave it their all, brought the funny, and the writers and crew created a story and a set that amplified their hilarious performances. Overall, this episode, which started in an effort to save money, ended up being one of the most unique installments of Friends, and even though it’s been decades since it aired, it’s still regarded by me and many others as one of the comedy’s best storylines. 

You can stream “The One with the Embryos” (which is Season 4, Episode 12) and all of Friends with a Max subscription. 

For 10 years in the ‘90s and early aughts, the writers on Friends had their work cut out for them, tasked with providing funny and memorable storylines for Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry and David Schwimmer. Somehow, they succeeded in not only making lifelong stars out of the show's main six but in creating a universe that included a long manifest of A-plus guest stars and beloved recurring characters. One of the most iconic of those was Ugly Naked Guy. So who exactly was this “unattractive nude man”? What happened to him, and why didn’t we ever see his face?

What’s notable about Ugly Naked Guy is that while he was talked about several times in the first five seasons of Friends, he was actually only seen twice, and both times his face was hidden. So let’s dive into the story behind one of the sitcom’s most enigmatic characters. 

Who Played Ugly Naked Guy, And Why Didn’t We Get To See His Face? 

First things first, the character of Ugly Naked Guy was the man who lived in the building across from Monica Gellar’s apartment. The gang often watched him through the window, commenting on whatever he was up to — playing the cello, using a Thighmaster, trying out Gravity Boots, etc. The actor, however, was an uncredited extra, and until 2016 — 17 years after his final appearance on Friends — nobody even remembered the actor’s name. 

Enter Todd Van Luling of the Huffington Post, who went on a yearlong quest to solve the mystery. He followed the Ugly Naked trail back to Jon Haugen, and all those years later, Haugen explained why his identity remained hidden for so long, saying: 

Friends producer Todd Stevens provided even more clarity as to why they kept the character uncredited, including why his face was never seen. Stevens told Van Luling: 

It’s true that Ugly Naked Guy wasn’t the kindest name the group could have picked, and I can see why there was apprehension to have an actor’s name and face associated with the character and all of his exhibitionist hobbies. But that begs the question … 

Was Ugly Naked Guy Really Naked? 

Ugly Naked Guy made physical appearances in two episodes: Season 3’s “The One With the Giant Poking Device” and Season 5’s “The One Where Everybody Finds Out.” In that latter episode, the unnamed character was moving out, and as Ross Gellar hoped to snatch up the apartment for himself, he attempted to bond with Ugly Naked Guy by stripping down. The extended version of the episode showed the two disrobed men sitting together and enjoying a basket of mini muffins. As for whether they were really nude or not, Jon Haugen revealed to the Huffington Post: 

It makes sense that Jon Haugen and David Schwimmer weren’t actually naked during shooting, but the production made it look realistic enough that the scene was kept off of the original NBC broadcast. 

How Was Jon Haugen Cast As Ugly Naked Guy? 

When the decision was made to find an extra to play the subject of the group’s voyeurism, there was likely no expectation that the character would become as iconic as he did. So how did Jon Haugen happen upon the opportunity? Executive producer Kevin Bright gave some insight on the casting process, saying on the DVD commentary for “The One Where Everybody Finds Out”: 

I can imagine that was one of the stranger casting processes anyone on either side of the table ever had to do. With the emphasis being on what the actors looked like in their boxer shorts rather than any actual acting prowess, the actors had to actually audition in their underwear. Even though the job only resulted in two episodes’ worth of work, Jon Haugen at least has lifelong bragging rights. 

What Happened To Ugly Naked Guy? 

As previously mentioned, the decision was made in Season 5 to have Ugly Naked Guy move, with Ross taking the apartment across from his sister. This served two purposes, the creators said in the episode commentary. For one thing, they felt it was time to move on from the “Ugly Naked” jokes. David Crane said: 

Marta Kauffman concurred and added that while Ugly Naked Guy had served them well as a source of humor, having Ross and Monica be able to see into each other’s apartments served as an even-better setup for stories and jokes in the latter half of the series. Ugly Naked Guy may have moved out, but Friends fans will never forget what he contributed to the early seasons. You can see a compilation of “Ugly Naked” jokes below: 

Ugly Naked Guy may seem like sort of a thankless role, with only two appearances over 10 years, an objectively unflattering nickname, not having his face shown or his name in the credits. Jon Haugen, however, didn't see it that way. He said he loved the character and had nothing but great memories of the cast and crew, telling the HuffPost: 

You can revisit Ugly Naked Guy’s episodes of Friends, or any of your other favorites, as all 10 seasons — and the 2021 reunion special — are available to stream with a Max subscription. Be sure to also check out our 2023 TV schedule to find out about all of the upcoming television and streaming premieres. 

For nearly 30 years, fans of the sitcom Friends have watched and rewatched every episode, memorized all the dialogue, and soaked in all of the behind-the-scenes stories we can get our hands on, from Jennifer Aniston’s hilarious on-set bloopers to all the Friends inside jokes. However, the actress who portrayed Rachel Green for 10 years reminded us that there are likely still plenty of stories we don’t know, as she referred to Lisa Kudrow by her wild nickname in honor of her former co-star’s birthday.

It was a milestone birthday for Lisa Kudrow, who played the “Smelly Cat”-singing Phoebe Buffay on Friends, as she turned 60 on July 30. No word on if she bounced a mile on a Hippity-Hop or got the perfect kiss, as her character did when she turned 30 (or, rather, 31) on the show, but she did get the sweetest shoutout from Jennifer Aniston, who posted to her Instagram: 

Jennifer Aniston shared several photos of her and Lisa Kudrow over the years, from their “Got Milk?” commercial to a couple shots of her and Courteney Cox kissing Kudrow on the cheek and even the selfie Aniston took of the whole Friends gang that served as her introduction to Instagram. She also reminded us that “Floosh” is her nickname for the actress, and the birthday girl responded in the comments with her own silly nickname for Aniston, writing: 

Courteney Cox, aka Monica Gellar, wasn’t to be outdone, as far as wild nicknames go. She posted a heartfelt tribute to the Better Nate Than Ever actress for her 60th birthday that included her own special moniker, saying: 

Just like Jennifer Aniston, the Scream star provided images of couch cuddles, sweet selfies and a Friends group shot as she called her “Loot” the “smartest, funniest, most thoughtful” person. And once again, Lisa Kudrow responded with her own nickname for Courteney Cox, as she wrote in the comments: 

Floosh, Joo, Loot and Cahoot. They’ve definitely got a rhyme scheme going on there, so I'm pretty sure there’s an amazing story behind all of this. While I’m dying to know what inspired the adorable nicknames for each other, it really just makes me happy that the friendship between these three actresses has withstood the test of time.

Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox have consistently remembered to honor their friend with sweet posts on her birthday, always providing plenty of compliments and throwback photos, and often referencing Lisa Kudrow’s infectious laugh.

You don’t have to wait for a birthday to roll around to witness the on-screen friendship among the three stars, as all 10 seasons of Friends and Friends: The Reunion are available to stream with a Max subscription. Also be sure to check out our 2023 TV schedule to see what premieres are coming soon.

Not all social media filters are created equal. There have been some truly frightening experiences out there when Instagram or TikTok purports to be able to turn users into a celebrity, swap their genders or otherwise alter their image. Just take the viral Friends filter that Courteney Cox tried out on herself: You know it’s pretty bad if even she couldn’t figure out which of her faces was supposed to be Monica. One aging filter, however, which a TikTok user applied to the same sitcom’s cast, returned some eerily accurate images.

The popularity of Friends has not waned that much in the two decades since its final episode aired on NBC in 2004, thanks in large part to near-constant reruns on cable and the entire series available to stream on Max. The familiarity of Jennifer Aniston, Matthew Perry and the rest of the cast’s characters make them popular subjects for many A.I.-generated images, and the below TikTok video almost makes it look like the actors today were digitally inserted into old scenes! Check it out: 

The cool thing about this using the aging filter on the Friends cast is that we actually know what those actors look like now, since it’s been nearly 30 years since the show’s premiere. It’s also been only a couple of years since the cast reunited on the old set, giving a strange familiarity to the digitally aged characters in the TikTok video. 

When an artist used artificial intelligence to reimagine the Friends characters as kids, the comparisons were not quite as accurate (or easily comparable).

Lisa Kudrow’s Phoebe and David Schwimmer’s Ross, to me, look the most like their real-life portrayers, but it seemed like everyone in the comments had their own opinion about who looked the most accurate. Strangely enough — or perhaps not strange at all — Jennifer Aniston didn’t pop up much in the post, and when she did, it didn’t appear that her Rachel had gotten any older. Many people amusingly pointed out that the technology even nailed that aspect of the actors’ current looks. Some of the comments included:

• Even the filter says Jennifer Aniston never ages. – Ally Garrard
• Wait .. Jennifer Aniston did not age 🤔 – Shann_McC
• My girl aged like the finest wine 😭✋ – regulus_black_cant_swim
• frkn Rachel!!! I need to know her skin care! PRONTO – alea.8g

Others didn’t like what the filter meant for their own futures, as the Friends cast seemed to prove they were getting a pretty accurate prediction of what they will look like in the decades to come. TikTok users wrote: 

• If it’s this accurate it means I-😭😭😭😭😭 – fiiloeee
• I started saving up for plastic surgery since I saw mine 😂 – TheHolicraft
• Wait.. If this is actually accurate. BRO I DON’T WANNA GET OLD I LOOK DEAD – zainabazharr_
• Oh hell no. I saw myself. 😂😂😂😂😂😂 Oh no – Audrine Rosnovski

As Jennifer Aniston says, aging is inevitable, and there’s always the chance that the years will be kinder to you than the filter. If you want to catch all of the Friends back in their earlier decades, all 10 seasons of the comedy are available with an HBO Max subscription. 

Like many A-listers, Kristen Bell decided to take a summer break from the Hollywood scene. She and her family got away from the hustle and bustle of Los Angeles, and took a trip to Idaho. However, Bell wasn't alone as multiple Hollywood stars flocked to the Pacific Northwest. The Frozen star had dinner with Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, and many other famous folks, which she documented in a photo, and I'm baffled

The Queenpins actress has been relaxing in Idaho with her family, including husband Dax Shepard and their two daughters, courtesy of late-night host Jimmy Kimmel’s South Fork Lodge, according to Deadline. 

Other A-list celebrities joined Kristen Bell and Shepard in the Gem State for a lovely outdoor dinner. Of course, the Good Place star had to document the star-studded moment by posting an image to her Instagram account. Besides Friends alums Aniston and Cox, there were other famous faces like Jason Bateman, Adam Scott, and John Mulaney sprinkled throughout the packed dinner table. Check out the entire celebrity-filled feast and other snaps from the Emmy-nominated actress below:

There were so many Hollywood stars at the long dinner table you would need a magnifying glass to identify them all. It says a lot about Jimmy Kimmel and his Hollywood relationships that he could get all those celebrities in one place. This impressive dinner party didn’t just boast drama actors, sitcom stars, and comedians though. Other big names included actresses Olivia Munn and Shiri Appleby, fellow late-night host Jimmy Fallon, director Adam McKay, CNN’s Jake Tapper, Snow Patrol member Johnny McDaid, and YouTuber Mark Rober. Talk about range.  

While people like Kim Kardashian were partying it up at the Fourth of July White Party last weekend, Jimmy Kimmel’s Idaho lodge seemed to rival it with such an impressive guest list. I was overwhelmed by the amount of star power around the table. You can spend minutes, if not, hours, trying to find all the celebrities vacationing and dining against the beautiful dusky Idaho skyline. Honestly, a magnifying glass is needed if you want to spot every A-lister.

Compared to most star-studded moments, seeing these Hollywood A-listers sitting at the long dining table seemed more casual and relaxed. This was evident by the Frozen II star’s candid photos from the week-long vacation. Oftentimes, celebrity gatherings can feel manicured and calculated to get a “these-people-might-be-real-friends” vibe. Fortunately, this dinner party was the opposite of that. Everyone was just themselves as they wore casual winter-esque clothing after finishing a nice meal. It was nice to see multiple stars sharing a few candid moments with their followers.

Kristen Bell took a much-deserved break as she gears up for her cinematic return as an undisclosed character in PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie, which premieres on September 29 on the 2023 movie schedule. She’s also reportedly set to voice Anna once more in the upcoming Disney sequel Frozen 3. However, while we wait for those, you can go back and watch the actress's series The Good Place with a Netflix subscription. 

Along with Bell, this A+ guest list has tons of upcoming TV series and movies coming out in the near future. So, overall, this party has sparked a lot of excitement!

We may be a bit shy of the Friends finale's 20th anniversary, but the cast makes us feel like it ended yesterday. The six leads remain close to this day, especially when it comes to Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox. The actresses behind Rachel and Monica became real-life besties while filming the series across a decade, and that hasn’t changed since the cameras stopped rolling. The latest proof of this: Aniston wishing Cox a happy birthday with sweet throwback photos of the pair. 

I know we talk a lot about the memorable romantic relationships of Friends, but it’s time to show some major love for Monica and Rachel. The roommates were there for each other from beginning to end through all the first dates, breakups, weddings and pregnancies. It’s so sweet, and Jennifer Aniston had us in our feels about the Friends besties on and off the screen with this Instagram post: 

On the morning of Courteney Cox’s 59th birthday, Aniston shared a round of photos of the two from over the years. She took a moment to call the fellow actress an “incredible” person with the “biggest heart,” she also noted that her co-star is the “most generous” of humans. It’s so sweet to see these two in their Friends days, stealing kisses, posing for photoshoots and making each other laugh during their scenes on the sitcom. 

These two have known each other since 1994, when Friends first began in the fall season. They saw each other just about every day playing their characters until the 2004 finale, and they have remained friends to this day. Just a couple of months ago, when Aniston was asked about the Friends cast, she shared that “everybody stays in touch,” and that they are “family forever.” Last month, Aniston also posted “thank god for girlfriends” on social media while flaunting her friendship with Cox alongside other famous gal pals like Lisa Kudrow and Reese Witherspoon.

When they were filming Friends, the pair apparently would have lunch together every day, which is most definitely enough to bond two people for life. Across nearly 30 years, Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox have gone on vacations together to places like Cabo and Tahiti, and their co-star Lisa Kudrow has also gone with them. Additionally, they’ve been there for each other through real-life weddings and divorce, plus Aniston is a godmother to Cox’s daughter, Coco. 

The entire Friends cast taped a reunion in 2021, which you can watch with a Max subscription alongside all ten seasons of Friends. Both Aniston and Cox are seriously going strong with their respective acting careers these days, with the Monica actress recently being in Scream VI and the Rachel actress set to return for The Morning Show for Season 3. We can only hope that someday these two will share the screen together, but either way, they clearly have become true friends across three decades.