The long-delayed Friends reunion special is set to film next year in March, actor Matthew Perry announced on Thursday.
The latest update comes after the filming was postponed this August due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
Friends reunion being rescheduled for the beginning of March. Looks like we have a busy year coming up. And that’s the way I like it!
— matthew perry (@MatthewPerry) November 12, 2020
The one-off unscripted special was announced by streaming service HBO Max this February and was slated to launch in May. However, the filming had been repeatedly delayed due to the pandemic and the subsequent lockdown that halted several productions.
The reunion special will see the original cast of Friends- Matthew Perry, Jennifer Aniston, Courtney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer, and Matt LeBlanc- return to the comedy’s original soundstage, Stage 24 of Warner Bros. According to The Hollywood Reporter, shooting schedules are still being finalised and the goal is to film the special during the first half of next year for a spring release.
Set to be directed by Ben Winston, the actors will be executive producers of the special episode, along with Friends creators Kevin Bright, Marta Kauffman, and David Crane.
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Friends aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, and lasted 10 seasons. The series finale was watched by around 52.5 million viewers in the US, making it the fifth most-watched series finale in television history, and the most-watched television episode of the 2000s.
Earlier, talking to Deadline, Aniston had said: “It’s going to be super. You know what? This has also given us more time to make it even more exciting and more fun than it would have been. So I choose to see it as the glass is half-full that it got postponed. Look, we’re not going anywhere. You’re never going to get rid of Friends, sorry. You’re stuck with us for life guys.”
The series was nominated for 62 Primetime Emmy Awards and won the Outstanding Comedy Series award in 2002 for season eight.