IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser.

'Friends' creators reveal 11 secrets from behind the scenes

As "Friends" celebrates its 25th anniversary, creators Marta Kauffman and David Crane share stories about the beloved '90s sitcom.
/ Source: TODAY

Longtime fans and newcomers alike can agree: "Friends" is a show that's pretty unforgettable.

"The show is comfort food," co-creator Marta Kauffman told TODAY's Joe Fryer when she sat down with fellow creator David Crane and executive producer Kevin Bright on Friday. "It's warm, it's inviting. You want those people in your house."

From 1994 to 2004 we followed the loves, losses, trials and tribulations of Joey (Matt LeBlanc), Chandler (Matthew Perry), Rachel (Jennifer Aniston), Monica (Courteney Cox), Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) and Ross (David Schwimmer), and many viewers know everything there is to know about them.

Image: Friends - Season 1
Six "Friends"? It'll never work! From l.: Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Courteney Cox, Matthew Perry, Jennifer Aniston and David Schwimmer NBC

However, Kauffman, Crane and Bright shared plenty of fun tidbits about our favorite pals. Let's call this interview "The One Where We All Learn New Things":

1. Executives didn't initially think the concept of six 20-somethings would fly.

"When we first sold the show, there was some apprehension about having a show that was all about people who were in their 20s," said Crane. "Where are the older characters? Do we need other demographics? ... And we went, 'No. Everybody has either experienced this or it's aspirational.'" He added, "Even though the characters are all the same age, everyone could connect with it in some way."

2. Matt LeBlanc was practically broke when he got hired.

"It was a long casting process," said Kauffman. They had Schwimmer in mind early on, but initially considered Cox for the part of Rachel. Cox wanted to play Monica. "So there was a little bit of readjustment there," she continued. Perry and Aniston were in other shows, and casting Chandler was almost impossible.

"Marta and I were thinking Chandler is just poorly written," said Crane. "Then Matthew came in and you went, 'Oh, well, there you go. Done. Done. That's the guy.'"

Cox had done a music video with Bruce Springsteen, so she had some recognition, but "Matt LeBlanc was on his last $11 when he got the part," said Kauffman.

Friends - Season 1
"Friends" creators Marta Kauffman and David Crane with executive producer Kevin S. Bright in 1994.NBC

3. When fans came up to them on the street, they knew they were on to something.

"I was wearing a 'Friends' jacket and someone stopped me on the street and asked me to tell them — they promised they wouldn't tell anybody, but what's gonna happen with Ross and Rachel?" recalled Kauffman. "That's when I started to think that it's out there."

4. Monica and Chandler were not always destined to be together.

"As the series evolved, it would tell us where it wanted to go," said Crane. "We didn't really know that Chandler and Monica were gonna end up together until even after that episode in London where they wake up in bed together. And the audience went insane. Originally that was going to be a thing, like a little mistake and funny. And they were so great together, and it kept giving us stories."

5. "Moo point" is one of the creators' favorite moments.

"'Moo point' is the one that comes back to me all the time and just makes me laugh, said Kauffman. "There are episodes. I loved the birth episodes."

"Every Thanksgiving episode," added Crane. "I just love the Thanksgiving episodes."

David Schwimmer orders everyone to "pivot!"
David Schwimmer orders everyone to "pivot!"Netflix

6. Tripping over the couch might have been Matt LeBlanc's funniest moment.

"We always do like to tell the story of Matt LeBlanc falling on his face," said Bright.

"Probably my favorite moment of 10 years was he comes running in, tripped behind the couch and went down so hard that you could see his feet fly up," Kauffman laughed. "I was laughing so hard I was on the floor. Kevin turned the camera on to me because I was laughing so hard."

Friends
Matt LeBlanc with his nemesis the couch and Lisa Kudrow.NBC

7. A pre-show huddle and pizza nights kept everyone super-close.

"Right before the show started, the cast always huddled backstage," said Bright. "And there was something about that huddle that just amped up the energy about what was about to happen. ... That wasn't something people got to see very often."

"When the show was over on a Friday night, very often, a bunch of people would stay and hang out," said Kauffman. "And we'd have pizza."

8. The creators say "No way!" to a reboot idea.

"Nope," said Crane. "No. No. No."

However, suggested Bright, there could be a sequel. "It's that time in your life where your friends turn 50," he joked.

"That's a different show," said Crane. "It has a different DNA. It will never be the same show. So why do it?"

9. Ross and Rachel's daughter? She's seeing a shrink.

"Ross and Rachel's daughter, Emma, is in therapy because she didn't get quite as much parental attention in those formative years," said Crane. "She just wasn't in enough episodes. I think she's probably having a lot to work through right now."

Ross, Rachel ... and Emma.
Ross, Rachel ... and Emma.Netflix

"Phoebe's got a cult," said Bright. "It's a very positive cult."

10. The "One With" episode titling idea came from two creators who didn't like wasting time on titles.

"We'd been on enough shows where people spent so much time trying to come up with clever, punning titles," said Crane. "So I thought the way you always talk about an episode. You always go, 'Oh, well, it's the one with the thing ...' so it was like, 'Let's just do that.' And then it stuck. It was easier and people remembered."

11. Kauffman and Crane kept a low bar for success on every episode.

"We used to always say after a show, 'Another one that didn't suck,'" recalled Kauffman.

"That's as far as we'd give ourselves," noted Crane.

And fortunately for "Friends" fans, they all were "The Ones That Didn't Suck."

Stream "Friends" at home with FandangoNOW. Fandango is part of our parent company, NBCUniversal.