Friends transformations then and now: What the cast look like 29 years after the first episode

Friends will be 30 next year and it’s one of those shows that became an instant hit. The cast were slung into stardom very quickly and like the show, they’ve aged. Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, Courtney Cox, Matthew perry, David Schwimmer and Matt LeBlanc might be known for their iconic Friends characters, the stars haven’t slowed down since the show first aired almost 30 years ago. Here’s what they look like now compared to the very first pilot episode of Friends.

Jennifer Aniston

Jennifer played Rachel Green in Friends and she is hands down the biggest star to come out of the show. After Friends ended she went on to star in some huge movies such as He’s Just Not That Into You, Horrible Bosses and We’re The Millers. She didn’t return to TV until 2019 when she joined Apple TV’s The Morning Show. Her role won her a SAG Award for outstanding performance by a female actor in a drama series. She also served as an executive producer on the show alongside Reese Witherspoon.

Shortly after Friends ended in 2004, Jennifer got a divorce from Brad Pitt. She married Justin Theroux in 2015 and the couple later divorced in 2017.

In 2016 she wrote a powerful essay which hit back at people who have body-shamed her over the years and speculated about her being pregnant. Her essay was also praised by her then-husband Justin Theroux.

Courtney Cox

Courtney played Monica Geller in Friends and she’s become an iconic face in the Scream movies franchise. In 2004, after Friends ended, Courtney welcomed her daughter Coco with her then-husband David Arquette. The couple later divorced in 2013.

In 2014 she got engaged to Snow Patrol guitarist Johnny McDaid who she met through Ed Sheeran. It was rumoured a few years ago that the three girls were all in a group chat together, it’s unsure if the group chat is still active but the three sometimes meet up still.

Lisa Kudrow

Lisa, aka Phoebe, starred in movies such as Easy A and Booksmart after Friends ended in 2004. She’s probably best known for playing Valerie Cherish in the TV series The Comeback.

Lisa Kudrow is now an established actor, producer and writer. She created and starred in a series called Web Therapy which lasted for four seasons and earned her an Emmy nomination. In recent years, Lisa has also opened up abouot her struggles with body image and even said that she “felt like this mountain of a woman” next to Jennifer and Courtney.

David Schwimer

David played Ross Geller, Monica’s brother and Rachel’s recurring fling. Notably David voiced the Giraffe in Madagascar after Friends ended and played Robert Kardashian Snr in American Crime Story alongside Sarah Paulson. His performance earned him his second Emmy nomination for Outstanding Support Actor in Limited Series or Movie.

In 2018, David Schwimmer hit the headlines after he looked identical to a suspected criminal in Blackpool. He made a parody video showing himself pretending to steal a crate of beers and pleading to be innocent.

Matthew Perry

Chandler Bing was played by Matthew Perry. He went to star in a few movies after Friends and even voiced Benny in the video game Fallout: New Vegas.

Matthew Perry has been very open about his struggles with substance abuse over the years. During Friends he became addicted to pain medication and lost a drastic amount of weight before checking into rehab back in 1997. He has since made an effort to focus on sobriety.

In 2018 it was reported Matthew was hospitalised for several months after undergoing gastrointestinal surgery.

Matt LeBlanc

Matt reprised his role as Joey Tribbiani in the spinoff Joey which ran for two seasons. He starred in the TV series Episodes from 2011 to 2017 and won a Golden Globe for his performance.

Matt LeBlanc also starred in Lisa Kudrow’s Web Therapy and even co-hosted Top Gear for a few years between 2016 and 2019.

Related stories recommended by this writer:

• These 21 secrets of how Friends was made will change the way you see the show

• This is how much money the Friends cast made for every single episode of the show

• These are the ages of the Friends cast now and when they first started the show