The long-awaited “Friends” reunion is set to begin production very soon.
The HBO Max special was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic but in a new interview, production company Fulwell 73 said it’s ready to start.
Fulwell 73 partner Leo Pearlman and senior executive Carly Shackleton told Deadline on Friday that shooting should be happening within the next two weeks and the reunion will be directed by Fulwell 73 partner Ben Winston.
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“We’re very excited for that,” said Pearlman.
But don’t expect a live studio audience. “We’re assuming that even 2021 doesn’t have audiences that we are used to for any of the shows that we make. If that changes, then great,” he added. “The only way it changes is if you have a vaccine.”
David Schwimmer as Ross Geller, Jennifer Aniston as Rachel Green, Courteney Cox as Monica Geller, Matthew Perry as Chandler Bing, Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe Buffay, Matt LeBlanc as Joey Tribbiani
(NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images)
The “Friends” reunion was originally supposed to be taped in April and air in May
but the pandemic suspended all plans.
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In late July, David Schwimmer (aka Ross Geller) provided an update about filming. “I can tell you that we are hoping to shoot [the reunion] in August, in mid-August, but honestly, we will do it when it’s safe,” Schwimmer told Entertainment Tonight.
The 53-year-old added: “There has always been a hope that a component of that reunion show will have a live audience, which makes the whole thing really tricky. We are obviously not going to risk anyone’s health by doing this.”
Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe Buffay, Matthew Perry as Chandler Bing, Jennifer Aniston as Rachel Green, David Schwimmer as Ross Geller, Courteney Cox as Monica Geller, Matt LeBlanc as Joey Tribbiani.
(Jon Ragel/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)
The actors on the series have all made it clear that they want to film it in person after rumors circulated about doing it virtually.
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“There hasn’t really been any talk about doing it remotely,” Lisa Kudrow told reporters while promoting her Netflix special. “I mean, it was an immediate ‘no’ if this was brought up. That’s not what this is. We are not doing it remotely.”
