‘Friends’ Reunion Special At HBO Max Postponed

Published on March 19, 2020.

The highly anticipated Friends reunion special at HBO Max has been delayed, according to a source.

On Wednesday, March 18, The Hollywood Reporter reported that production for the upcoming special has been postponed until at least May amid health and safety concerns. According to the publication, the Friends reunion special was set to be filmed next week, but a new formal filming date has not yet been determined.

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The news of the postponed unscripted special comes in the wake of countless other television shows making the decision to film without live audiences and delaying or halting production as a result of public health and safety concerns.

In February, HBO Max confirmed a Friends reunion special starring Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matthew Perry, David Schwimmer and Matt Leblanc was officially happening.

“The one where they got back together,” HBO Max posted to their Instagram Story. “The Friends cast set to reunite for exclusive HBO Max special #FriendsReunion #HBOMax.”

The entire Friends cast will return to the show’s original soundstage, Stage 24, on the Warner Bros. Studio lot in Burbank, California, for a celebration of the beloved series. The unscripted Friends special, along with all 236 episodes of the show, was set to be available to subscribers at the launch of HBO Max in May 2020. It is unclear if that will change.

“Guess you could call this the one where they all got back together — we are reuniting with David, Jennifer, Courteney, Matt, Lisa, and Matthew for an HBO Max special that will be programmed alongside the entire Friendslibrary,” Kevin Reilly, chief content officer, HBO Max and president, TBS, TNT, and truTV, said in a statement.

To announce the upcoming reunion special, Cox, Aniston, Kudrow, Perry and Schwimmer all posted the same cast photo to their respective Instagram accounts while LeBlanc humorously posted a M*A*S*H cast photo.

“It’s happening,” the Friends cast all wrote in their captions.