Filming Friends’ Fountain Opening Was a Miserable Experience

Lisa Kudrow, the performer behind Phoebe Buffay’s character in the iconic sitcom Friends, has said that filming the series’ opening sequence “was a nightmare.” Part of the show’s legacy has to do with its lighthearted tone that’s perfectly introduced in the introduction to each episode, where the six New Yorkers play around in a fountain and a couch in the middle of the park while The Rembrandts rock their song “I’ll Be There For You.” The problem is that apparently, during the shoot, it wasn’t all smiles and laughs.

As reported by Screen Rant, during her appearance on Conan O’Brien’s podcast, Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend, Kudrow revealed the details of the shoot, which took place as the cast was still getting to know each other, and the future of the show was still a gamble. Luckily, it appears that the late Matthew Perry, aka Chandler Bing, saved the day with off-camera grace.

“Honest to God,
shooting those titles in the fountain was a nightmare
. Y’know, I don’t like discomfort, at all. Mild, any kind, I don’t like it.
And that fountain was cold. And it was very late at night, we’d done I think 500 takes of dancing
– Unmotivated dancing is hard too, right? It’s just- It’s hard. And then the ‘Hey! What if you play with that scarf?’ Y’know, stuff, and you just get ‘No! I don’t wanna! It’s not funny!’ I was a real joy!”

Kudrow then continues and addresses how Perry’s presence was a release:

”
And it was so cold, and we had to keep doing it, and Matthew- And they said ‘We’re gonna do one more take,’ and he said ‘One more? Okay. Can’t remember a time I wasn’t in a fountain. Seriously, can’t remember a time I wasn’t wet.
What are we? Wet? Are we wet in a fountain? What? Are we dancing in a fountain?’…They hadn’t written him like that yet, and
I don’t know when I’ve laughed so hard, and I just- So I’m not kidding, you see us laughing, and it’s because he had just said ‘Ready? Are we going again? Are we going to go again? Are we going to do it again?’ And laughing hysterically just doubled over, and that’s in the titles.
”

You Can Be Part of the Iconic Opening Sequence to Friends

Well, sort of. The opening sequence in Friends is one of those that doesn’t immediately make you press the “skip intro” button when you stream. It’s catchy and refreshing, and it’s so embedded in popular culture that it drives you to spend a little more than 20 minutes in front of the TV because you know you’ll have a few laughs. The producers behind the show knew of the importance of such a moment, so they decided to do something about it.

If you head off to Los Angeles, and find yourself planning to do a studio tour, chances are you will do the Warner Bros. Studio Tour. Regardless of what option you choose (there are several), part of the tour includes sitting on a fake couch in front of the actual Friends fountain where the opening sequence was shot. Yes, it appears they actually moved the fountain to give fans the opportunity to recreate part of their favorite opening sequence. As you sit down on the couch, you’ll find yourself singing the lyrics to the song you’ve listened to countless times. But who knows, perhaps you’ll also find yourself walking on a piece of grass where Phoebe tried to run like a maniac while Rachel looked embarrassed. Exactly, the studio tour also includes passing over the area that resembled a piece of Central Park where Phoebe did her famous jogging.

Friends

Release Date

September 22, 1994

Seasons

10