During its ten-year run, it’s no surprise that Friends had its fair share of bloopers and on-set mishaps. From bursts of laughter during filming to scenes that went completely off track, the cast had plenty of moments where they couldn’t keep it together—and these didn’t make it to the final episodes.
To give fans a peek at some of these funny behind-the-scenes moments, we have compiled a list of five times things went “wrong” during filming but ended up creating some hilarious stories. Check them out!
5. Ross’s hilarious bagpipes
In the episode The One with Joey’s Brain, Ross decides to learn the bagpipes to perform at Monica and Chandler’s wedding despite having no talent for it. He attempts to play “Celebration” by Kool & The Gang in front of his friends, but instead of a beautiful melody, he produces an ear-splitting racket. No one is impressed—except Phoebe, who enthusiastically sings along in her unique, off-key style.
David Schwimmer’s hilarious performance made it almost impossible for the cast to keep a straight face. In the final cut of the scene, you can see Jennifer Aniston struggling to suppress her laughter, trying her best not to break character and spoil yet another take.
4. Jennifer Coolidge + Lisa Kudrow = LOL
Another hilarious behind-the-scenes moment from *Friends* came during Jennifer Coolidge’s guest appearance in “The One with Ross’s Tan.” Coolidge played Amanda, an old Monica and Phoebe friend who exaggeratedly flaunts a fake British accent and a snobby attitude. When Amanda shows up at Central Perk to reconnect, she dominates the conversation, talking endlessly about her life while hardly letting her friends get a word in.
Despite the brief scene, it was a challenge to film because Lisa Kudrow (Phoebe) couldn’t stop laughing whenever Coolidge put on her over-the-top accent. Her laughter was contagious, causing Courteney Cox (Monica) and the live audience to break into giggles, making it one of those memorable moments that took several takes to get right.
3. Joey (almost) naked
In addition to the behind-the-scenes bloopers, the cast of Friends also enjoyed playing pranks on each other during filming. One such moment happened during “The One with the Soap Opera Party.” In the episode, Joey walks into Chandler’s apartment wearing a bathrobe. After Monica jokes that he’s dressed up for a secret party, he dramatically opens the robe and pretends to get naked in front of his friends.
While Matt LeBlanc wasn’t nude for the scene, the first take had everyone cracking up. At Matthew Perry’s suggestion, LeBlanc stuck a photo of David Schwimmer on his underwear, adding a hilarious surprise with the entire cast and crew in stitches.
2. The Jennifer Aniston Prank
Another well-known prank behind the scenes of Friends left Jennifer Aniston particularly startled. In “The One About the Truth About London,” there’s a scene where Ross and Ben race through a building and toss a doll dressed like Ross down the stairs, startling Rachel.
This moment was so memorable because Aniston wasn’t in on the joke. David Schwimmer had secretly added the dummy to the scene, causing it to fall headfirst onto the floor. Her reaction was genuine, shifting from shock to annoyance instantly as she realized what had just happened.
1. The unforgettable couch scene
One of the funniest moments in Friends is the iconic scene from “The One with the Policeman,” where Ross, Chandler, and Rachel struggle to carry Ross’s couch up the stairs. The filming of this scene turned out to be just as hilarious as what ended up on screen.
David Schwimmer, playing Ross, repeatedly shouts the word “pivot” to his friends, but he can barely hold it together while filming. As soon as the first cut was called, he burst into laughter, and in a reunion video shown in 2021, the trio can be seen doubled over, struggling to breathe from laughing so hard, with David shouting “pivot” again, which sent the audience into fits of giggles.
Did you know about these behind-the-scenes moments from Friends? If you’re interested in reliving the laughter, you can catch those episodes and all ten seasons of the series on Max.
