Fans, rejoice! Twelve years after their final season, the well-loved cast of Friends is finally reuniting…but it’s not for a new episode. Aw.
NBC confirmed today during this year’s Television Critics Association’s press tour that Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer, Courtney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matthew Perry, and Matt LeBlanc will come together for a two-hour TV special honoring iconic sitcom director James Burrows, who recently shot his 1,000th episode on television for the comedy series Crowded. The special will air on Feb. 21.
James has directed several episodes for sitcoms such as Cheers, Will and Grace, Mike and Molly, Frasier, among others, including 15 episodes of Friends. The cast of many of the shows he shot are also expected to participate in the TV special.
New announcement – #FriendsReunion! #NBCUTCA
— NBC (@nbc) January 13, 2016
However, E! Online reported that the actors may not be in the same room at the same time during the reunion, but will still participate in the special. NBC’s Robert Greenblatt said, “Hoping that all six of them will be in the same room at the same time, but I’m not sure we can logistically pull that off.”
So, will we be expecting a new season of Friends anytime soon? Maybe not, considering that its co-creator Marta Kaufman previously stated (with great emphasis) that “It’ll never happen—not happening!”
In short, this TV special is the closest we’ll ever have to a reunion. This is more emotional than Ross saying Rachel’s name during his wedding vows and finding out that Monica and Chandler aren’t really dating in real life.
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