'Friends' Cast Cooking Big Surprise For Fans After Delayed Reunion Special
Just when "Friends" die-hard fans thought that 2020 is already the year that they will see all six original pals reunited in one reunion episode, the coronavirus pandemic happened and changed everything.
In February, the cast of the hit 90s sitcom broke the internet after teasing that a much-requested reunion special is finally happening. HBO Max's chief content officer Kevin Reilly later on confirmed that a reunion special is in the works and it will be released together with the launch of HBO's new streaming app on May 2020.
The one-time unscripted episode is supposed to be filmed last March 23 and 24, but due to the massive spread of the deadly COVID-19, the production was put on hold leaving fans waiting longer, again.
While Warner Bros and HBO Max declined to comment on the delayed production, Variety revealed that the filming had been moved to May.
Surprise Reunion Special
While most of the fans are heartbroken that they will have to wait for a little longer to see Rachel, Monica, Phoebe, Joey, Chandler and Ross back on screen again, the cast has been secretly cooking something to mend their broken heart.
According to reports, the cast and crew actually filmed a 90-minute special to surprise fans while they wait for the biggest reunion in television history. Director Ben Winston and Courteney Cox initiated a "mock rehearsal," which they did over a live video app called Zoom.
The crew is looking forward to releasing the virtual reunion before the postponed episode airs.
"As soon as filming was cancelled, everyone started panicking as it took so long to get their schedules to align, there was a deep fear it may take a year or even longer to get them all back together again," an insider revealed.
"Courtney immediately set up a Zoom meeting for them, and they all logged on to discuss ideas - brain-storming and bringing in the producers for a session which they called a mock rehearsal and chatted for almost two hours," the source added.
Jennifer Aniston also assured the whole team that she would do whatever she can to make sure that the rest of the crew would not have to wait for months to film the reunion special. It turns out that the 51-year-old actress has the busiest schedule among the six original casts.
The insider also revealed that the whole cast and crew have been doing daily Zoom meetings, which turns out to be their room for brainstorming and exchanging of brilliant ideas.
"Their Zoom sessions have been brilliant fun, and there's some hilarious material on there which they hope can be aired as either a series of teasers or even a stand-alone special," the source said.
Earlier this month, Matt LeBlanc, who plays the role of Joey Tribbiani, spilled the tea about the delayed production of the reunion special.
According to the 52-year-old actor, the reunion special will be nothing like the hit series that they did a couple of years ago. He also likened the reunion special to being reunited as band members.
"Like we got the band back together without the instruments," he said.
