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Quiz: How Well Do You Really Know These 'Friends'?

Now that the cast have all turned 50, let's see how well you can name names

Tracey Minkin

En español

Published July 29, 2020

10 Questions

Could they be any more AARP-worthy? It turns out that the fabulous half-dozen forever-young 20-somethings of Friends are now all in their 50s! As NBC’s classic situation comedy returns to bingeable glory on HBO Max this summer, test your knowledge of this unforgettable cast of characters and the celebrities who played them.

Quiz: How Well Do You Really Know These 'Friends'?

[ {
  "question" : "Two of the six cast members were the youngest (and the same age) when the show premiered. Who were they?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "Courteney Cox and David Schwimmer",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Matt LeBlanc and Jennifer Aniston",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Matthew Perry and Jennifer Aniston",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "Matthew Perry and Matt LeBlanc",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Perry and Aniston were the babies of the famed ensemble cast — both were only 25 when the first episode aired on NBC on Sept. 22, 1994. (LeBlanc was 26, Schwimmer was 27, Cox was 30, and Lisa Kudrow was 31.)",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "Lisa Kudrow was not the first choice to play Phoebe Buffay, America’s favorite free-spirited massage therapist and coffeehouse chanteuse. Who turned down the role before Kudrow said yes?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "Ellen DeGeneres",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "Kathy Griffin",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Jane Krakowski",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Jane Lynch",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Although Lynch and Griffin were considered by producers, and Krakowski auditioned for the part of Rachel Green but was also considered for Phoebe, the famed comic and talk show host, 62, was the producers’ first choice for the role. But she turned it down.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "Which cast member actually turned down one character in favor of another?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "Jennifer Aniston",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Courteney Cox",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "Matthew Perry",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "David Schwimmer",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "According to Marta Kauffman, 63, cocreator of the series, the producers originally offered the role of Rachel to Cox. But Cox is said to have wanted a “stronger” female role, and the indomitable Monica Geller was born.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "Which star worked as a bike messenger before landing the role of a lifetime on \"Friends\"?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "Jennifer Aniston",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "Lisa Kudrow",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Matthew Perry",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "David Schwimmer",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Unlike Rachel, who seemed never to have a job before working at Central Perk, Aniston worked a number of side hustles while auditioning for roles in L.A. and NYC — including a stint as a bicycle messenger in New York. The then-19-year-old actress managed to run into an open car door and quit two days later.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "Matthew Perry got which megastar to appear on \"Friends\" as the result of a bet?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "George Clooney",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Julia Roberts",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Winona Ryder",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Bruce Willis",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "They were costars in the 2000 film \"The Whole Nine Yards.\" Willis lost a bet to Perry about the movie’s opening success, resulting in his appearance in a scene-stealing (and ultimately Emmy-winning turn in Season 6 as Paul Stevens, the father of Ross Geller’s college-age girlfriend Elizabeth). More to love about this? Willis donated his fee for the work to an assortment of charities, including a rape treatment center and AIDS research organization. Turns out Bruce is “Just a Love Machine” for real.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "There was a lot of kissing over 10 seasons of \"Friends,\" and every character kissed every other character except for which two (and pecks on the cheek don’t count)?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "Joey and Ross",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Monica and Phoebe",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "Monica and Ross",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Ross and Chandler",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "While we saw Ross kiss Joey Tribbiani in Season 2 (to help Joey prepare for a role) and learned that a very drunk Chandler Bing planted one on Ross (and everyone else) during a party in Season 3, we also know that Ross mistakenly kissed his own sister, Monica, in the dark when he thought he was kissing Rachel. We don’t see the kiss, but we do the reveal — including the iconic line, “I was the pile of coats!” It’s part of a hilarious college flashback episode in Season 10.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "Which “Sex and the City” star had a cameo role on “Friends”?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "Kim Cattrall",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Kristin Davis",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "Cynthia Nixon",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Sarah Jessica Parker",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Also now in her 50s (she’s 55), Davis crossed over from playing art maven Charlotte York Goldenblatt on “SATC” to Erin — a fleeting love interest of Joey in Season 7 — who becomes an instant best friend to Phoebe and Rachel. Some things never change!",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "How many total divorces has David Schwimmer gone through as Ross Geller and in real life?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "3",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "4",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "5",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "6",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Ross endured a Divorce Guy punch line season after season. He was divorced three times during the series (Carol, Emily and Rachel). In real life, Schwimmer got divorced from British artist Zoë Buckman — his only marriage — in 2017.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "Who is the only cast member NOT to have received a Primetime Emmy nomination?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "Jennifer Aniston",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Courteney Cox",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "Matt LeBlanc",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Matthew Perry",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Considered the most well-known of the cast when \"Friends\" premiered, Cox was never honored with an Emmy nomination. While LeBlanc, Perry and Schwimmer all were nominated over time, Aniston took home the statue for outstanding lead actress in a comedy series in 2002, and Kudrow won for outstanding supporting actress in 1998. (The show picked up its only win for best comedy series in 2002.)",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "Which star has been binge-watching \"Friends\" — just like the rest of us — during the pandemic?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "Courteney Cox",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "Lisa Kudrow",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Matt LeBlanc",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "David Schwimmer",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Cox told Jimmy Kimmel that she has bought the entire set and is making her way through all 10 seasons during lockdown.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
} ]

Quiz Progress

0 Correct

0 Incorrect