Friends is one of the most successful and popular sitcoms of all time. In its ten-year run, it gave us some great moments, but also some gags that have aged badly. What accompanied us from start to finish, however, was the Intro of the serieswhich really everyone who has ever turned on a television should know.
While I’ll be there for you by The Rembrandts blared from the speakers, we watched the six-person gang splashing around and fooling around in a fountain. But the shoot was anything but funny.
Lisa Kudrow explains why the Friends intro shoot was so terrible
Lisa Kudrow, who played Phoebe in the series, was a guest on Conan O’Brien’s podcast. In it, she talks about the scene in the fountain, as Cinema Blend reports. These recordings were apparently an ordeal for the whole gang.
Shooting these covers in the fountain was a nightmare. […] And the fountain was cold. And it was very late at night. I think we did 500 takes. Dancing without motivation is hard too, isn’t it? It’s just hard. It was so cold, and we had to keep dancing.
Lisa Kudrow is not alone in her opinion. Jennifer Aniston also reported a few years ago that it felt strange to dance in the fountain.
Here you can watch the fountain action in the famous intro:
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Matthew Perry saved the mood on set
The situation was saved for the cast by none other than Matthew Perry. According to Kudrow, the recently deceased Chandler actor his typical reactions kept his colleagues’ spirits up. When the director said they needed another take, he replied:
Another one? Yes, please. I can’t remember a time when I haven’t been in a fountain. Seriously, can you? I can’t remember a time when I haven’t been wet. What, are we wet? What, are we wet in a fountain? What, are we dancing in a fountain?
The actor proved very early in the production that it was right to cast him in the lovingly ironic role to cast. After all, Matthew Perry almost didn’t get the role. With his manner, he made everyone on set’s job easier.
Lisa Kudrow recalled in an interview that they laughed at his jokes on set and that these moments were filmed. The laughter in the intro is, however, genuine.