15 Things The Cast OfFriends Doesn't Want You To Know

Friends is one of those sitcoms that went on for many years and still finished strong when it ended after ten amazing seasons. Viewers just couldn't get enough of the six twenty-somethings who'd get together in a coffee shop and trade barbs, leaving the audience in stitches. Who can forget the love story of Ross and Rachel? Or Monica and Chandler? Or the love-hate sibling rivalry between Ross and Monica? Or Phoebe's quirks and Joey's airhead comments? And it wasn't just the viewers who loved the show; critics did as well, as proven by the multitude of major awards the show won over the years. It took home Emmy Awards, Screen Actors' Guild Awards, and a Golden Globe.

But like all long-running TV shows, it had its fair share of behind-the-scenes goings-on that were not for public consumption. Whether these incidents were spoken of eventually or never confirmed, there's no denying that fans will take the opportunity to absorb any tidbit that has to do with the show and our favorite characters.

15 Are they as close in real life as we think?

The six friends seemed like such a fun bunch, not just onscreen, but in real life as well. In fact, the show's creators encouraged the group to try and form genuine relationships offscreen because that camaraderie would surely translate onscreen. Jennifer Aniston claimed that they didn't even have to try; they all just naturally bonded throughout the ten-year series. While all the actors genuinely like each other, not all of them are as close as they used to be. That's an inevitable situation, since they stopped seeing each other on a daily basis after the show ended. They still keep in touch every so often, but some are closer to each other than others. The strongest friendship to come out of the show is Aniston and Courteney Cox's, with Aniston being the godmother of Cox's daughter Coco. They are the only ones who still hang out on a regular basis, going on vacations together and such.

14 Matthew Perry almost didn't take the job.

Many actors were considered for the roles of the Friends characters, but ultimately, six virtual then-unknowns were cast. Kathy Griffin and Jane Lynch both read for the part of Phoebe and actually became friends after meeting at the auditions. Jon Farveau and Jon Cryer were in the shortlist for the role of Chandler before the part went to Matthew Perry. Many may not know that Perry almost didn't get the part, not because he didn't want it, but because he almost wasn't supposed to be available. During the pilot season, Perry filmed the pilot for a show called LAX 2194 simultaneous to the Friends filming. The show was about baggage handlers at LAX who sorted aliens' luggage. Thankfully, the show wasn't picked up and that subsequently paved the way for Perry being cast full-time as Chandler.

13 Matthew Perry battled addiction, but didn't talk about it until after rehab.

It's public knowledge that Matthew Perry had a longstanding battle with addiction throughout his years on Friends, though he tried to hide it at first. It was obvious on the show, as there were certain seasons that he was gauntly thin, once dropping to 145 pounds, only to balloon to several pounds a season or two later. In 1997, he completed a 28-day program for a Vicodin addiction. He again entered rehab in 2001 to treat an addiction to opioids, amphetamines, and alcohol. At one point, he had such severe stomach pains that the doctor advised rehab. His publicist announced the news two weeks after he entered rehab, but Perry himself didn't talk about it until after his treatment. He told People magazine, “I was never high at work. I was painfully hungover. Then eventually things got so bad I couldn't hide it and everybody knew.”

12 Jennifer Aniston almost didn't come back for the final season.

Among all six cast members, Jennifer Aniston became the most famous one as the show progressed. For one, her character Rachel was an audience favorite, due to her fashion sense and Aniston's ability to play the character so effectively. This paved the way for Hollywood movie producers to knock on her door and cast her in successful films such as Picture Perfect, The Good Girl, and Bruce Almighty. And lastly, she was then married to Brad Pitt, which further put her on the Hollywood radar of A-listers. Rumor has it, the show ended when it did because she was hesitant to reprise her role, saying she wasn't sure she had it in her to continue on as Rachel, likely because she wanted to pursue other roles. She eventually agreed to come back for the tenth and last season to give her character a proper happy ending.

11 Ross and Rachel weren't supposed to be the main couple of the show.

As the story and the intertwining relationships of the six characters were being developed, the writers of the show initially intended to have Monica and Joey as the main couple, but that idea was quickly abandoned after the pilot. The writers though, had always planned for Ross and Rachel to become a couple, as it was established early on that there were feelings involved on Ross's end since his college days. In season one, he was hesitant to try and start things up with Rachel because she had just gotten out of an engagement and he was going through a divorce. But it's clear his feelings for her never really went away. When the two finally got together in season two, there was no denying the chemistry between David Schwimmer and Jennifer Aniston. This chemistry is what eventually led to them being the central couple.

10 Like her character, Courteney Cox had trouble getting pregnant.

After Monica and Chandler get married, they eventually start trying to have a baby, but to no avail. They both go to the doctor to get themselves tested and they find out that Monica is unable to have babies. Like Monica and Chandler, Courteney Cox had gotten married in real life to David Arquette and the pair also had trouble having a baby. Cox mentioned in an interview that she could get pregnant easily; the problem was, she couldn't sustain it, resulting in several miscarriages. It was after one of these miscarriages that she had to film the scene in which Rachel gives birth to baby Emma-one can only imagine the pain Cox must have gone through with that. Fortunately, she was eventually able to give birth to her daughter Coco in 2004, which was the same year the series ended with Chandler and Monica adopting twins.

9 The cast was against the Joey-Rachel romance.

TV fanatics know the meaning of OTP (one-true pairing), which is the onscreen relationship you “ship” most. In Friends, the top OTP was Ross and Rachel, the second being Monica and Chandler. The opposite of an OTP is a NOTP, meaning the couple whose relationship you'd be most opposed to. The cast members admitted that their NOTP was the Joey-Rachel romance, which played out after Ross and Rachel broke up for the tenth time. According to Matt LeBlanc, it felt wildly inappropriate for the two to get together. The group even banded together and talked to the showrunners as a team, expressing their concern for the storyline. They said it didn't feel right. Suffice to say, the writers likely saw how the relationship wouldn't have worked out and promptly ended it after only a few episodes.

8 Phoebe and Chandler were not meant to be main characters.

The show runners promoted Friends as one with an ensemble cast, as seen in the opening credits, where the actors are introduced in alphabetical order. While it's true that some of the characters' stories got more focus than others, like Ross and Rachel's on-again-off-again romance throughout the ten seasons, everyone was supposed to be on equal footing in terms of billing. But that wasn't always the case. It was revealed that the characters of Phoebe and Chandler were only meant to be supporting characters, not main ones. This could mean they weren't even meant to be in all episodes, which would have been a shame because both characters are absolutely hilarious. Luckily for the fans, the producers decided to make Phoebe and Chandler main characters, along with the rest of the cast.

7 Courteney Cox was the only one who never got an Emmy nomination.

Friends was highly-acclaimed throughout its ten-season run and it has its multiple nominations and awards to show for it. It was nominated for 62 Primetime Emmy Awards, winning for Outstanding Comedy Series in 2002. And it also received several nominations at the Golden Globes and Screen Actor's Guild Awards. Given their comedic talents, it seems but natural that all of the actors on the show were nominated at one point or another during the show's run. But the “weakest link” was apparently Courteney Cox, who was never once nominated for an Emmy. David Schwimmer and Matthew Perry were both nominated one time each; Matt LeBlanc was nominated three times; Lisa Kudrow won for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series in 1998; and Jennifer Aniston won for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 2002.

6 Jennifer Aniston hated the “Rachel” haircut.

One of the reasons Rachel was widely regarded as the most popular character on the show wasn't just because she was hilarious and endearing; it was also because girls looked up to her as a trend-setter and fashionista. The rich-girl-turned-working-class-citizen wore simple, but classic outfits, items of clothing that were affordable to the regular girl on the street. But what catapulted her to popularity was the ever-famous Rachel haircut in season two. Jennifer Aniston sported the layered, shaggy hairstyle for her character and the public loved it so much, that almost all ladies tried to copy it. But can you believe that Aniston hated it? She even went so far as telling Allure in an interview, “I think it was the ugliest haircut I've ever seen. Let's just say I'm not a fan of short, layered haircuts on me personally, so I don't love revisiting that particular era.”

5 Phoebe was supposed to be “goth.”

Many actresses were considered for the role of Phoebe. Kathy Griffin and Jane Lynch both auditioned for the role, but things didn't pan out. Ellen DeGeneres was given a script and an offer of the role as well, but she turned it down-it's pretty hard to imagine the TV show host playing Phoebe, so her decision not to take the role was a blessing in disguise. When the creators were developing the character, they initially thought of making Phoebe a goth girl-you know, the very '90s look that emo girls went for, with the all-black outfits, black nail polish, and super dark eye make-up and lipstick. With that characteristic in mind, the role was offered to Janeane Garofalo, who could effectively pull off the look back in her heyday. But she turned down the role and the goth aspect of Phoebe's character was canned for the hippy-like, quirky, and bubbly Phoebe that Lisa Kudrow got to play.

4 Phoebe and Joey as friends with benefits?

The cast members had their own “ships” when it came to their characters. Courteney Cox was rooting for Monica and Chandler from the start, naming Chandler as the friend she'd “do” if forced to pick. Then there were the NOTPs, like Joey and Rachel. But who's to say they were opposed to any friends with benefits scenario? Early on, Lisa Kudrow and Matt LeBlanc sat with the writers and suggested that Phoebe and Joey occasionally hooked up over the years. It would have made sense given both characters' personalities, with Joey being the forever ladies' man and Phoebe being quite liberal in her views of sex. The writers, though, didn't agree to the idea and that was probably for the best. It probably could have led to all sorts of complications down the line for the characters.

3 A Monica and Chandler scene at the airport was canned due to 9/11.

During the season eight episode entitled “The One Where Rachel Tells Ross” in 2001, there was supposed to be a subplot that revolved around Monica and Chandler going off on their honeymoon and being grilled by airport security because Chandler made a joke about a bomb. Unfortunately, the episode was due to air a few weeks after September 11 or the 9/11 attacks in the US. The producers hastily pulled out the scene and quickly filmed a replacement plot that had the couple trying to get an upgrade instead. The deleted scene was released on YouTube years later and showed both Chandler and Monica tactlessly, but hilariously referring to bombs at the airport, leading to both of them getting detained. And while the scene was funny, it definitely would have been in poor taste to show it as originally intended in the wake of the attacks.

2 Jennifer Aniston supposedly didn't get along with Reese Witherspoon.

Rachel Green was one of three spoiled daughters of a wealthy doctor and his wife and while her other two sisters never changed their ways, Rachel was the one to break out of the mold and join the real world, wherein she experienced financial struggles for the first time. Her two sisters were eventually introduced to the viewers at different seasons and they were played by Christina Applegate as Amy and Reese Witherspoon as Jill. Naturally, both brought drama, with Jill asking for Rachel's help because she was financially cut off by their father. Jill started pursuing Ross, much to Rachel's outrage, but it's clear she was only doing so to spite her sister. Witherspoon was supposed to be a recurring character, set to appear in around six episodes but rumor has it, Aniston didn't get along with her and asked the producers to write her off. Witherspoon ended up appearing in just two episodes.

1 Did their contracts stipulate not to sleep together?

Ever since the final episode of Friends aired in 2004, fans had been hoping against hope for a reunion, which was almost impossible due to all the former cast members' busy schedules. Fans' wishes finally came true more than 10 years later, when five of the six friends (they weren't even complete!) gathered together in 2016 to pay tribute to one of its directors, James Burrows. The only one who couldn't make it was Matthew Perry, who was in London at that time, doing a play. During their interview, host Andy Cohen asked if they were ever made to sign contracts that said they weren't allowed to sleep with each other. All the actors looked embarrassed, with David Schwimmer deflecting the question by making a joke. No one answered the question and it's probably something we'll never know!

Sources: mirror.co.uk, digitalspy.com, bustle.com, buzzfeed.com