Courteney Cox Remembers ‘Friends’ Finale on 20th Anniversary: ‘Forever Grateful’

Courteney Cox is taking a bittersweet trip down memory lane. On Monday, May 6, the actress took to social media to mark the 20th anniversary of the Friends series finale, which also comes as the show celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. Cox starred on the hit sitcom as Monica Geller, sharing that she is “forever grateful” for the show.

“It’s been 20 years since the series finale of Friends. I don’t know how we were able to act through all the tears. Forever grateful,” Cox, 59, captioned a clip of the final scene of the show. In the scene, Monica, Rachel (Jennifer Aniston), Ross (David Schwimmer), Joey (Matt LeBlanc), Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow), and Chandler (Matthew Perry) stand in Monica and Rachel’s old apartment just before Monica and Chandler leave for their new home, marking the end of an era. In the bittersweet moment, Rachel asks, “do you guys have to go to the new house right away, or do you have some time?” the group all agreeing to get coffee.

Premiering in September 1994, Friends chronicled the lives of six 20-something New Yorkers as they navigated through their personal and professional lives. The series aired for 10 seasons, cementing its place as one of the most iconic sitcoms, before airing its final episode on May 6, 2004, with (52.5 million viewers tuning in for the episode. The series remains in syndication and can be streamed on Max, which brought the cast back together at the Warner Bros. Studio lot in L.A. in 2021 for the long-awaited Friends reunion special.

This year’s anniversary is a bittersweet one for the cast, as it marks their first without Matthew Perry. Perry, who starred on the hit sitcom as Chandler Bing, passed away in October 2023 at the age of 54 due to acute effects of ketamine and drowning, according to an autopsy report. In a joint statement, his Friends co-stars said they were “all so utterly devastated” by Perry’s passing, adding, “We were more than just cast mates. We are a family.”

A source told Us Weekly ahead of the Monday anniversary, “the prospect of having a reunion or a formal get-together without Matthew is bittersweet. There will be a huge void. [But] they know Matthew would’ve wanted them to carry on and celebrate the show. So that’s very much on their minds as they move forward.”