‘Friends’ Star Matthew Perry Sparks Fan Frenzy on Instagram Over Deleted Reunion Photo

The long-gestating Friends reunion is coming to HBO Max in 2021, and according to a now-deleted Instagram post from star Matthew Perry, filming is finally underway after months of COVID-19 delays. Perry shared a picture of himself in a makeup trailer with the caption “Seconds before eating a makeup brush. Not to mention reuniting with my Friends.” The post was quickly deleted, but the damage was done. Friends fans on Twitter were thrilled to have an update that implied that the special was coming sooner rather than later. No official release date has been revealed at this point in time.

“I am so so so hyped for this reunion,” one fan tweeted. “WE WILL BE WATCHING,” wrote another excitedly. “WE WAITED FOR THIS AND WE’RE GETTING IT FINALLY,” tweet screamed another. Despite ending in 2004, Friends has remained a mainstay in popular culture and a favorite on streaming.

Perry and his castmates have been dropping hints about what to expect from the special since it was announced, most recently with David Schwimmer on The Graham Norton Show in April. “Nothing is scripted, and we are not in character,” Schwimmer explained. “We are all ourselves, although there is one section of it that I don’t want to give away, but we all read something.” He added that the reunion filming was “the first time in years” that he has seen his co-stars all together.

Schwimmer also told Andy Cohen that they had to work around pandemic guidelines. “So, finally, I mean, we figured out a way to film it safely and there’s going to be a portion of it that we filmed outside because of, you know, for safety protocols,” he explained. Schwimmer also denied the rumor that Ellen Degeneres was serving as a host and moderator for the reunion special. “She’s not. Do you know, can you say who is?” Cohen asked. “You know what, I don’t know if I can actually,” Schwimmer replied, adding, “Should’ve found that out. Um, all right. It’s not Ellen; it’s not Billy Crystal. I could tell you who it’s not.”

Lisa Kudrow appeared on Rob Lowe’s Literally! podcast in January, revealing that filming was planned for spring. “I pre-shot something for it already, so we’re definitely doing it,” she said. She also shared that the reunion is “us getting together which doesn’t happen a lot and has never happened in front of other people since 2004, when we stopped.”