On September 22, 1994, TV audiences got six new pals with the cast of the hit NBC series Friends. Now, decades later, we’ve watched Jennifer Aniston (Rachel Green), Courteney Cox (Monica Geller), Lisa Kudrow (Phoebe Buffay), Matt LeBlanc (Joey Tribbiani), Matthew Perry (Chandler Bing) and David Schwimmer (Ross Geller) take on numerous other roles through the years.
The friend group went from aimless 20-somethings to grown-ups with great careers, less complicated love lives and growing families during the show’s 10-season run. Still, fans cannot forget the iconic Central Perk frequenters, leading to chatter about a revival.
HBO Max announced that the original cast would reunite for the first time for an unscripted reunion special, which premiered in May 2021.
Scroll to see the stars of the ’90s hit today and now.
The megastar has been hard at work since ditching her famous Rachel hairstyle. Aniston’s starred in many big-screen roles with box office hits and awards-season darlings, including He’s Just Not That Into You, Marley & Me, We’re the Millers, Horrible Bosses, Cake and Dumplin’. In 2019, she returned to TV as star and executive producer on Apple TV+’s The Morning Show, which earned her a SAG Award.
One year after Friends ended, Aniston and then-husband Brad Pitt divorced. She went on to marry Justin Theroux in 2015. The duo split in 2017.
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Post-Friends, LeBlanc focused his industry efforts behind the scenes. His production company, Fort Hill Productions, coproduced the 2006 made-for-TV movie The Prince. The actor, who split from Melissa McKnight in 2006 after three years of marriage, is the dad of daughter Marina. His continued TV success included his Showtime series, Episodes, and his CBS sitcom, Man With a Plan. He also cohosted Top Gear from 2016 to 2019.
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Mom of daughter Coco with ex-husband David Arquette, Cox went on to star in the ABC-turned-TBS comedy Cougar Town, which aired its final episode in April 2014. Following her divorce from Arquette, the actress accepted Snow Patrol rocker Johnny McDaid’s proposal. In 2019, she hosted and executive produced 9 Months with Courteney Cox. She later appeared in Scream 5 in January 2022.
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Known to the younger set as the voice of Melman, the giraffe in the animated Madagascar films, Schwimmer made his feature directorial debut with 2007’s Run, Fatboy, Run. He has also appeared on Broadway in The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial. In 2012, he portrayed Newell L. Miller in Web Therapy alongside Kudrow. Schwimmer stole the show yet again on the small screen as Robert Kardashian in 2016’s The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story and in his season 10 arc on Will & Grace. In 2020, he landed a role on Intelligence, a British television sitcom that was picked up by Peacock.
Schwimmer was married to artist Zoë Buckman from 2010 to 2017. They share one daughter, who they welcomed in 2011.
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Now married with a son, Kudrow was the cocreator, writer and star of HBO’s The Comeback in 2005, about a has-been sitcom star yearning for a second chance. Although the actress earned an Emmy nomination for her role as Valerie Cherish, the series was canceled after just 13 episodes. The show made a comeback itself, however, in 2014 when HBO brought it back for season 2. The star also appeared in Web Therapy, P.S. I Love You, Easy A, Grace and Frankie, and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. In 2020, she landed a recurring role in Netflix’s Space Force.
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Perry made himself known to a new generation of fans when he played the adult version of Zac Efron’s character in 2009’s 17 Again. The actor also appeared in numerous TV series including Mr. Sunshine, The Good Wife, Go On and The Odd Couple. He underwent surgery for a gastrointestinal perforation in 2018.
In November 2020, Perry got engaged to talent manager Molly Hurwitz. They called it quits six months later.
Perry died in October 2023 at age 54 following an apparent drowning.
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