Lisa Kudrow Says the ‘Friends’ Cast Only Met Together Once in the 17 Years Between Series Finale and Reunion Special

Jack Dunn

10 December 2024 at 8:11 pm·2-min read

Lisa Kudrow, who played the free-spirited Pheobe Buffay in the hit NBC sitcom “Friends,” revealed that the entire cast of the ’90s mainstay only met up once in the 17 years between the series finale in 2004 and “Friends: The Reunion,” which premiered in 2021.

“We’d only had dinner, the six of us, once before since the show ended,” said Kudrow on a Tuesday episode of Jesse Tyler Ferguson’s “Dinner’s on Me” podcast.

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Despite the hiatus, Kudrow added that once the “Friends” cast — comprised of Matthew Perry, Courteney Cox, Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer and Matt LeBlanc — finally reunited “10 years” after the show ended, she felt like they “didn’t miss a beat.”

“Just us at someone’s house and [we] had dinner, and like, didn’t miss a beat,” Kudrow said.

Perry, who played the wisecracking Chandler Bing on “Friends,” died at 54 years old on Oct. 28, 2023, from complications caused by ketamine use. Authorities found him unresponsive in the hot tub of his Los Angeles home. While responders were initially called for cardiac arrest, the toxicology report from the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office later revealed the actor died from “the acute effects of ketamine.”

In August, five arrests were made in connection with Perry’s death, including two medical doctors and his assistant who had been, “taking advantage” of Perry by selling him the drugs, according to the Department of Justice.

“We are all so utterly devastated by the loss of Matthew. We were more than just cast mates. We are a family. There is so much to say, but right now we’re going to take a moment to grieve and process this unfathomable loss,” wrote Aniston, Cox, Kudrow, LeBlanc and Schwimmer in a joint statement following Perry’s death. “In time we will say more, as and when we are able. For now, our thoughts and our love are with Matty’s family, his friends, and everyone who loved him around the world.”

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