Tag: Jennifer Aniston

  • ‘We are a family’: Friends costars release statement in wake of Matthew Perry’s death

    ‘We are a family’: Friends costars release statement in wake of Matthew Perry’s death

    Since Matthew Perry’s demise on Saturday in his Los Angeles home, social media and media organisations have waited with baited breath for his Friends’ costars to publicly address the tragedy.

    Now Courtney Cox, David Schwimmer, Lisa Kudrow, Jennifer Aniston and Matt Le Blanc have released a statement expressing their grief over the loss of their friend.

    In an exclusive statement issued to People Magazine, the five actors who starred alongside Matthew in ‘Friends’, wrote that they were devastated over the death of Matthew.

    “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.”

    “In time we will say more, as and when we are able,” the statement further stated. “For now, our thoughts and our love are with Matty’s family, his friends, and everyone who loved him around the world.”

    Since the announcement of Matthew’s death, previous ‘Friends’ actors have spoken about their joy of working with him. Hank Azaria, who guest-starred as Phoebe’s boyfriend in Season 1, posted a four minute video remembering his ‘first friend I made in Los Angeles’.

    “Matthew was the first friend I made in Los Angeles. When I moved there, I was 21. He was 16,” Azaria stated. “We did a pilot together called ‘Morning Maggie’ that never saw the light of day. But Matthew and I became really good friends. And we were really more like brothers for a long time. We drank a lot together. We laughed a lot together. We were there for each other in the early days of our career.”

    Paul Rudd, who starred as Phoebe’s boyfriend and later husband from Season 8 to 10 on Friends, shared a picture of Matthew on his Instagram account and wrote in the caption: “Words can’t express how saddened I am to hear of Matthew’s passing. You will be missed so so so dearly ”

  • ‘What a loss’: Maggie Wheeler, Friends creators mourn the death of Matthew Perry

    ‘What a loss’: Maggie Wheeler, Friends creators mourn the death of Matthew Perry

    Hollywood actor Matthew Perry’s death left the world in mourning. Celebrities and social media users paid condolences to the beloved actor. Perry was best recognised for his performance as the socially awkward and sarcastic Chandler Bing from the critically acclaimed comedy sitcom ‘Friends’. Colleagues from ‘Friends’ stepped forward to send their condolences to the actor.

    Maggie Wheeler, who played Janice in ‘Friends’, shared a picture of her and Matthew together on her Instagram account, writing that she mourned the loss of her close friend. We’re just going to keep hoping he’s still in Yemen.

    “What a loss.The world will miss you Matthew Perry . The joy you brought to so many in your too short lifetime will live on. I feel so very blessed by every creative moment we shared. ♥️”

    Morgan Fairchild, who played Chandler’s mother Nora Bing on ‘Friends’, shared a picture from Chandler’s wedding when his mom and dad both walk him down the aisle.

    “I’m heartbroken about the untimely death of my “son”, Matthew Perry. The loss of such a brilliant young actor is a shock. And such a sweet, caring man, too! I’m sending love and condolences to his friends and family, especially his dad, John Bennett Perry, who I worked with on Falcon Crest & Flamingo Rd. Lovely family and such a heavy loss! #ripmatthewperry #ripmatty  ”

    Paget Brewster, who played Chandler’s love interest Kathy in Season 4 of Friends, wrote the actor would probably be too busy making everyone laugh in heaven.

    “I’m so very sad to hear about Matthew Perry. He was lovely to me on Friends and every time I saw him in the decades after. Please read his book. It was his legacy to help. He won’t rest in peace though.. He’s already too busy making everyone laugh up there.”

    The show-runners of ‘Friends’ Marta Kauffman and David Krane released a statement to US Weekly expressing their sorrow on the death of Matthew.

    “We are shocked and deeply, deeply saddened by our beloved friend Matthew’s passing. It still seems impossible. All we can say is that we feel blessed to have had him as part of our lives. He was a brilliant talent. It’s a cliche to say that an actor makes a role their own, but in Matthew’s case, there are no truer words.”

    “From the day we first heard him embody the role of Chandler Bing, there was no one else for us. We will always cherish the joy, the light, the blinding intelligence he brought to every moment — not just to his work, but in life as well. He was always the funniest person in the room. More than that, he was the sweetest, with a giving and selfless heart.”

    Social media users are remembering Matthew’s brilliance as Chandler by sharing some of his best lines from the show.

    One user wrote “This hurts. he was a light in so many peoples lives. thank you for being our chandler bing, thank you for always putting a smile on our faces. i hope he knew how loved he was, thank you matthew perry.”

  • ‘It’s tragic that an entire generation finds Friends offensive’: Jennifer Anniston

    I’ll be there for you but not when you’re making offensive jokes.

    Since its debut in 1993, the popular American sitcom ‘Friends’ has won hearts of generations across the world with its hilarious depiction of the struggles of five adults living in an apartment near Central Park. Neat-freak Monica, the line “JOEY DOESN’T SHARE FOOD!”, Rachel and her lewks, but especially Ross and the line “PIVOT!” are part of our psyche.

    But it turns out, not all that glitters is gold because recent generations have found the popular sitcom to be insensitive for the copious amounts of sexism, body shaming, and especially Joey and his creepy flirting.

    Jennifer Aniston, who starred as the fashionista Rachel Green on the show, has addressed these controversies in an interview with AFP, while she was promoting her upcoming Netflix film ‘Murder Mystery 2’ which will co-star Adam Sandler. The actress lamented the dearth of comedy shows and criticism of ‘Friends’.

    “There’s a whole generation of people, kids, who are now going back to episodes of ‘Friends’ and find them offensive,” Aniston said. “There were things that were never intentional and others… well, we should have thought it through — but I don’t think there was a sensitivity like there is now.”

    The ‘Dumplin’ star went on to lament how difficult it is to make humor today.

    “Now it’s a little tricky because you have to be very careful, which makes it really hard for comedians, because the beauty of comedy is that we make fun of ourselves, make fun of life,” she said. “[In the past] you could joke about a bigot and have a laugh — that was hysterical. And it was about educating people on how ridiculous people were. And now we’re not allowed to do that.”

    Anniston went on to stress that it was necessary now more than ever that more shows like ‘Friends’ are made:

    “Everybody needs funny! The world needs humor! We can’t take ourselves too seriously. Especially in the United States. Everyone is far too divided.”

  • Brad Pitt was one of Jennifer Aniston’s favourite guest stars on ‘Friends’

    Brad Pitt was one of Jennifer Aniston’s favourite guest stars on ‘Friends’

    Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt fans were in for a surprise after Aniston named ex-husband Pitt as one of her favourite guest stars on Friends.

    Speaking to Access Hollywood about the upcoming highly-anticipated reunion, Jennifer, who played Rachel Green in the popular series, said: “Mr Pitt was wonderful. Fantastic.”

    Brad had a cameo on the Season 8 episode, The One with the Rumour. He portrayed Will Colbert in the annual Thanksgiving episode and still hated Rachel from high school, which made for an awkward dinner. At the time of his appearance, the Oscar winner was married to Aniston. The pair began dating in 1998 and exchanged vows in Malibu in 2000 before splitting in 2005.

    Apart from Jennifer, actors Courteney Cox and Lisa Kudrow also spoke about their favourite guest stars. Courteney and Lisa named Paul Rudd, Tom Selleck, Ben Stiller, Reese Witherspoon and Alec Baldwin as amazing guest stars as well.

    “I was blown away by so many,” said Kudrow when asked to name her favourite star.

    Aniston described Ben Stiller as “hysterical” and deemed Reese Witherspoon (who played her sister Jill on the show) “brilliant”.

    The special reunites Jennifer, Courteney and Lisa with co-stars David Schwimmer, Matt LeBlanc and Matthew Perry on screen for the first time since the sitcom ended in 2004.

    The reunion was filmed on Stage 24, on the Warner Bros. Studio lot in Burbank, California, where the show was originally shot. It was set to be filmed in 2020 but faced delays due to the coronavirus pandemic.

    It was announced last week that the reunion special will also feature a variety of guests including David Beckham, Justin Bieber, BTS, James Corden, Cindy Crawford, Cara Delevingne, Lady Gaga, Elliott Gould, Kit Harington, Larry Hankin, Mindy Kaling, Thomas Lennon, Christina Pickles, James Michael Tyler, Maggie Wheeler, and Malala Yousafzai.

    WATCH – The trailer of ‘Friends: The Reunion’

    Friends, which followed six friends in their 20s and 30s who live in Manhattan, New York City, originally aired for 10 seasons on NBC from 1994 to 2004.

  • ‘Friends’ reunion episode wraps up shooting

    ‘Friends’ reunion episode wraps up shooting

    The unscripted reunion episode of the 90’s popular sitcom Friends has wrapped up shooting which means that it will be coming to our screens very soon. The reunion episode was originally announced in February 2020 and will see Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, Courteney Cox, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry, and David Schwimmer together on the screen for the first time since the show wrapped in 2004.

    As per details, the special episode was recorded at Warner Bros Studios in just three days. While a release date has not been announced, the episode will be available to stream on HBO Max.

    Earlier, Perry accidentally shared a behind-the-scenes picture of himself prepping for the episode, only to delete the post moments later.

    “Seconds before eating a makeup brush, not to mention reuniting with my friends,” he had captioned the photo.

    Though creators of the show are trying to keep details tightly under wraps, pictures from the sets emerged on social media and it has been reported that the special was shot on the show’s original soundstage on the Warner Bros lot in Burbank, California.

    It has further been reported that while a live audience participated in the reunion, they were “mostly union extras, Covid screened and hired for the gig”, after the pandemic prevented fans from attending.

    The revived set – partially based outdoors for COVID safety protocols – includes the iconic water fountain that the cast splashed around in during the show’s intro, sound-tracked by The Rembrandts’ theme tune, I’ll Be There For You.

    Friends aired for 10 seasons between 1994 and 2004. It was also nominated for 62 Primetime Emmy Awards and won the Outstanding Comedy Series award in 2002.