Friends director Ben Winston has revealed how a production blunder almost ruined the reunion special’s emotional opening sequence.
Friends: The Reunion aired on 27 May and saw the sitcom’s main cast – Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer, Courteney Cox, Jennifer Aniston, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry – reunite on-air for the first time since the series came to an end in 2004.
Winston explained to The Times that he had wanted the actors’ first meeting to take place against the emotional backdrop of the show’s original soundstage at Warner Bros studios in California.
The director went on to discuss how he ran into problems when the casts’ six trailers were positioned right next to each other on the lot, meaning that they were likely to see one another before the official reunion on camera.
He said: “I was so upset. The point of the show is they haven’t seen each other. But it was too late to move them.”
Instead of moving the trailers, however, the production team went about setting up “tents” to ensure they wouldn’t see each other before it was time.
“We built tents around each of their doorways,” said Winston. “And I texted the six of them and said, ‘Look, I know you want to see each other but I’m begging you: please stay in your own dressing room until you’re called to the stage. I really want to catch that moment.’”
The director explained that the cast teased him about breaking the rules.
“They were like, ‘What do you mean? We’re all in the car on the way here together.’ ‘Jen, will you pick me up a coffee?’ ‘Oh, I’m already outside your house.’ And then Matt [texted], ‘I’m already in bed with David,’” recalled Winston.
He continued: “They mocked me for wanting that moment. But they did do what I asked. And you do get the feeling that they haven’t seen each other for ages. And it’s a really beautiful moment. I’ve never seen a bond like these six have.”
Schwimmer recently shared a photo of him and Aniston cuddling on the set of the Friends reunion after the pair revealed they nearly shared an off-screen romance during the series’ run.
