We're Definitely Never Ever Getting a 'Friends' Revival, and This Is Why

Despite the show Friends wrapping up in 2004 it's still insanely popular and has hit a resurgence among young millennial viewers. Now we have renewed clarity on whether the show will ever grace our TVs/laptops/iPhones in the future. And it's a big fat nope.

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Despite the show Friends wrapping up in 2004, making it 15 years old and me truly old, it's still insanely popular and has hit a resurgence among young millennial viewers. New and old fans love the show so much that when there was a whisper that the series might leave Netflix (and it still might, after 2019!) the Internet lost its mind. Well, now we have renewed clarity on whether the show will ever grace our TVs/laptops/iPhones in the future. And it's a big fat nope.

Marta Kauffman, who's the co-creator, explained in an interview with Rolling Stone. "One, the show is about a time in your life when your friends are your family. It's not that time anymore. All we'd be doing is putting those six actors back together, but the heart of the show would be gone. Two, I don't know what good it does us. The show is doing just fine, people love it. [A reunion] could only disappoint. 'The One Where Everyone's Disappointed.'"

Kauffman also said that the way people watch TV is fundamentally different now, and it's lost the magic of coming together to watch. "Back when I was in college, it was Mary Tyler Moore and Rhoda. And part of the affection I have for those shows is that we would all crowd into a room and watch as a community. Now, people lie in bed and watch on their computers."

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Jennifer Aniston has herself said that a reunion in any form wouldn't work, partially because the show took place in a time that no longer exists. **weeps** "There was something about a time where our faces weren't stuffed into cell phones. We weren't checking Facebooks and Instagrams. We were in a room together, in a coffee shop together. We were talking, having conversations. We have lost that," she told E!.

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But she also gets why people watch it all the time. "Not only was it a gift for us, but it's something that people have been able to carry with them. It's comfort food and it makes them feel better when they're feeling down when they want to distract themselves, because it is always on!"

Kauffman also reminisced about the two times she KNEW they had something special: One when someone in a Friends jacket stopped to ask her about the show, and "[o]ur very first rehearsal when we had all six of them onstage for the first time and they read the scene in the coffeehouse. I got chills up and down my spine and thought, 'This is special. There is something about these six, this script for them, that's special.'"

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Katherine J. Igoe
Katherine J. Igoe
Contributing Editor

Katherine’s a contributing syndications editor at Marie Claire who covers fashion, culture, and lifestyle. In her role, she writes stories that are syndicated by MSN and other outlets. She’s been a full-time freelancer for over a decade and has had roles with Cosmopolitan (where she covered lifestyle, culture, and fashion SEO content) and Bustle (where she was their movies and culture writer). She has bylines in New York Times, Parents, InStyle, Refinery29, and elsewhere. Her work has also been syndicated by ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, Seventeen, Good Housekeeping, and Women’s Health, among others. In addition to her stories reaching millions of readers, content she's written and edited has qualified for a Bell Ringer Award and received a Communicator Award. 

Katherine has a BA in English and art history from the University of Notre Dame and an MA in art business from the Sotheby's Institute of Art (with a focus on marketing/communications). She covers a wide breadth of topics: she's written about how to find the very best petite jeans, how sustainable travel has found its footing on Instagram, and what it's like to be a professional advice-giver in the modern world. Her personal essays have run the gamut from learning to dress as a queer woman to navigating food allergies as a mom. She also has deep knowledge of SEO/EATT, affiliate revenue, commerce, and social media; she regularly edits the work of other writers. She speaks at writing-related events and podcasts about freelancing and journalism, mentors students and other new writers, and consults on coursework. Currently, Katherine lives in Boston with her husband and two kids, and you can follow her on Instagram. If you're wondering about her last name, it’s “I go to dinner,” not “Her huge ego,” but she responds to both.