Friends Cast: Where Are They Now?

Friends ran from September 1994 to May 2004, and the cast has shared a close relationship through the years. See what the stars are up to now

Friends
Photo: NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty

Friends has had a lasting impact on fans.

Revolving around six friends living in New York City, the series originally ran from September 1994 to May 2004 and quickly received critical acclaim, becoming one of the most popular television shows of all time.

Not only did it skyrocket the careers of its ensemble cast, including Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry and David Schwimmer, but the cast has maintained a close friendship in real life since the show went off the air.

In addition to various reunions over the years, the cast notably got back together for HBO's Friends: The Reunion special in 2021.

See what the cast has been up to since the show ended.

01 of 06

Jennifer Aniston as Rachel Green

JENNIFER ANISTON
NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images;LAN/Corbis

Aniston played Rachel Green, who became so much more than the shopping-obsessed runaway bride we met in season 1. Not only did her character land a coveted job at Ralph Lauren, but she also — much to everyone's delight — finally ended up with Ross in the show's series finale.

Since Friends, the Golden Globe winner earned laughs in memorable films such as Horrible Bosses (2011), We're the Millers (2013) and Horrible Bosses 2 (2014). She has also taken dramatic turns in indies like Cake (2014) and The Yellow Birds (2017).

In 2019, she returned to television with her Friends on-screen sister, played by Reese Witherspoon, in The Morning Show, earning an Emmy nomination and a Screen Actors Guild Award win.

Outside of work, she had high-profile marriages to Brad Pitt and Justin Theroux.

02 of 06

David Scwhimmer as Ross Geller

DAVID SCHWIMMER
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Oh, Ross Geller. We rooted for Schwimmer's paleontologist-turned-professor despite not always agreeing with his decisions throughout the show's 10-year run.

Cut to 2016, and within a few seconds of viewing The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story, audiences completely forgot about his Friends character and became enraptured by his portrayal of the late defense attorney Robert Kardashian.

Schwimmer had a seven-episode arc on the Will & Grace reboot's second season as Grace's foe-turned-boyfriend Noah (2018–2019). In 2020, he began his role as Jerry Bernstein on the British cyber crimes comedy Intelligence, which is created by (and co-stars) Nick Mohammed.

Off-screen, he's dad to a daughter with his ex, British artist Zoë Buckman.

03 of 06

Courteney Cox as Monica Geller

COURTENEY COX
Chris Haston/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images;Reisig & Taylor/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

Hands down, the most organized friend — Cox's Monica Geller won us over with her neurotic antics and, of course, her super-romantic proposal to Chandler, which left us crying for longer than we care to admit.

Since the series wrapped, are you even surprised the Friends star went on to find more success in her career? Not only did Cox star in Cougar Town, which ran from 2009 to 2015, but she also directed a handful of its episodes, as well as her first feature film, Just Before I Go, in 2014. Cox returned to the small screen in 2022 for the Starz comedy-horror series Shining Vale.

She's divorced from David Arquette, though the friendly exes co-parent daughter Coco and reunited on-screen in 2022 for Scream, the fifth movie in the iconic slasher film franchise. Cox's Gale Weathers returns for Scream VI in 2023.

04 of 06

Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe Buffay

LISA KUDROW
NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images;Chris Haston/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

Kudrow's Phoebe Buffay provided comic relief during theatrical moments on the show, and in that same vein, introduced us to our favorite song of the '90s, "Smelly Cat." Phoebe also married Mike. (And, let's be real, who wouldn't want to end up with Paul Rudd?)

Following her time on the show, Kudrow has stayed busy with roles on TV shows such as The Comeback, Web Therapy and Space Force and in films including The Girl on the Train (2016), Long Shot (2019), Like a Boss (2020) and Better Nate Than Ever (2022).

IRL she is married to advertising exec Michel Stern, with whom she has son Julian, who in 2021 graduated from USC.

05 of 06

Matt LeBlanc as Joey Tribbiani

MATT LEBLANC
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Sure, Joey Tribbiani might have been a bit of a ladies' man — okay, a big ladies' man — but his charm and timeless opening line ("How you doin'?") made the soap opera actor all the more lovable.

Since coming off of Friends, LeBlanc has found much success, earning a 2012 Golden Globe Award for his role in Showtime's comedy Episodes, which aired from 2011 to 2017. He also led the People's Choice Award-winning CBS series Man with a Plan for four seasons from 2016 to 2020.

Divorced from wife Melissa McKnight, he's also a father of one.

06 of 06

Matthew Perry as Chandler Bing

Matthew Perry as Chandler Bing in Friends and at the premier of end of longing in 2016
Reisig & Taylor/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images;Dan Wooller/REX/Shutterstock

Leave it to Perry's Chandler Bing to deliver a sarcastic remark or punch line, which would never fail in making us cackle uncontrollably. Not only did the character keep us laughing throughout the show's run, but it simultaneously made us "aww" whenever he and Monica shared a sweet moment.

The actor has stayed busy throughout the years, starring on the big screen opposite Hollywood giants like Salma Hayek and Bruce Willis, and eventually transitioning back to TV on The Good Wife, Go On and The Odd Couple.

After struggling with sobriety, he's since gone on to help others battling drug and alcohol addictions. In 2018, he suffered a gastrointestinal perforation that left him bedridden for three months. Perry wrote about his experience with fame and substance abuse in his 2022 memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing.

On Oct. 28, 2023, Perry was found dead at a Los Angeles-area home, TMZ reported, citing law enforcement sources. Law enforcement sources also confirmed Perry's death to the Los Angeles Times. The outlet reported that Perry was found in a jacuzzi at the home, and no drugs were found at the scene.

A spokesperson for the Los Angeles Police Department told PEOPLE that officers responded to a call at Perry's address regarding the death of a male in his 50s, but would not confirm the deceased's identity.

TMZ was also told that there was no foul play involved, and their sources said first-responders were called to the residence for cardiac arrest.

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