Jennifer Aniston Recalls Sweet Prank She and Matthew Perry Played on 'Friends' Co-Star Lisa Kudrow
During a Variety Actors on Actors chat with Abbott Elementary’s Quinta Brunson, Jennifer Aniston recalled a sweet prank she and late pal Matthew Perry played on their Friends co-star Lisa Kudrow the day the iconic series premiered 30 years ago. NBC’s landmark sitcom debuted on Sept. 22, 1994 and concluded on May 6, 2004 after 10 seasons.
“It’s so strange to even think that it’s 30 years old,” Aniston said. She recalled that, on the afternoon of that day in September ‘94, she and Perry were biding time until the much-anticipated premiere.
“I remember the day that it was going to premiere on television, on NBC,” Aniston continued, “Matthew Perry and I were having lunch somewhere, and we knew Lisa was getting her hair colored.”
Perry and Aniston’s anxious pre-premiere jitters led them to track Kudrow to her appointment and enact an eccentric prank on their co-star.
“So we ran into the hair salon, and I snuck up—she was in the sink—and I took the nozzle from the guy that was supposed to be doing it and just started washing her hair,” Aniston laughed.
“It definitely flew out of control,” she admitted of the joke, “and that was unfortunate. But the excitement we had, it feels like yesterday.”
Along with Aniston, Perry, and Kudrow, Friends starred Courteney Cox, David Schwimmer, and Matt LeBlanc. The cast remains “family forever,” according to Aniston, but their bond was tested when Perry unexpectedly passed away on October 28, 2023. His cause of death was later determined to be “acute effects of ketamine,” with drowning, coronary artery disease, and the effects of buprenorphine--a synthetic opioid used to treat addiction disorders--listed as contributing factors.
Aniston broke her silence last November, penning her “little brother” a heartfelt tribute. “We loved him deeply,” she said. “He was such a part of our DNA. We were always the six of us. This was a chosen family that forever changed the course of who we were and what our path was going to be."
Speaking with Brunson for Variety, Aniston said that she and her four surviving cast members have grown even closer in the wake of Perry’s tragic passing. “I talked on FaceTime with Court last night for an hour, and Lisa and the boys, and we just have a really—it’s a family forever.”
She said the entire cast is grateful for their Friends experience, which has become more poignant as the years go on and they realize the show’s true magnitude and reach.
“The fact that it’s had this long, wonderful life and it still means a lot to people is one of the greatest gifts I think all five of us,” Aniston said, before correcting herself to include Perry, "all six of us—we never could imagine.”
All 10 seasons of Friends are currently streaming on Max.