How Friends Transformed Jennifer Aniston Forever

Jennifer Aniston has been a friend to millions of TV viewers and moviegoers for decades. In recent years, she's captured the attention of audiences on the big screen with comedies like "We're the Millers" and took the streaming world by storm as news anchor Alex Levy on the Apple TV+ drama "The Morning Show." Before becoming a household name, Aniston made her way in Hollywood with a few short-lived roles on TV sitcoms and played Tory in the 1992 horror movie "Leprechaun." Everything changed when she and five other actors stepped into Central Perk, sharing laughs and coffee with audiences on the hit sitcom "Friends."

Her road to stardom came with encouragement from her father, fellow actor John Aniston. A staple on the soap opera "Days of Our Lives," he first appeared as Dr. Eric Richards in 1970 before returning to the series as Victor Kiriakis in 1985. In an E! News interview from 1990, John said, "Jennifer is a natural talent. ... The comic instinct she has is unerring. That's her greatest asset." Even though her dad was a daytime icon and her mother, Nancy Dow, was known for her role as Jan Wilson in the 1969 film "The Ice House," Jennifer noted that she didn't start seeing acting as a career until she got older. Of course, the rest is history, as "Friends" transformed her life and career forever.

A bride in a coffee shop. That's how "Friends" introduces Jennifer Aniston's character Rachel Green during Season 1, Episode 1, "The One Where Monica Gets a Roommate." She leaves her fiance Barry at the altar and enters Central Perk where high school friend Monica Geller (Courteney Cox) is sitting with her brother Ross (David Schwimmer) and their friends Chandler Bing (Matthew Perry), Joey Tribbiani (Matt LeBlanc), and Phoebe Buffay (Lisa Kudrow). It's the beginning of Rachel's road toward independence, which includes cutting up credit cards and working toward a fashion career.

Aniston told The Wall Street Journal what it was like to audition for the job. "And I walked into the audition and there were so many girls. And I remember just thinking, 'Oh, boy.' Just gave it my all and came home." In 2004, she told NBC News that she left the audition questioning her performance. "Kind of felt like, I think I needed– wish I could have gone back. I should have done that differently. Should have done this differently. I got home, two hours later, and I had gotten the job."

The show became a hallmark of the 1990s primetime lineup. Cosimo Fusco, who plays Rachel's boyfriend Paolo, told The Guardian about how Aniston reacted when the network ordered 12 episodes while they were filming. "Jennifer Aniston basically cried in my lap because nothing like that had ever happened to her before," he said.

Jennifer Aniston almost missed out on playing Rachel Green due to the CBS sitcom "Muddling Through." She plays Madeline Drego Cooper, a daughter adjusting to her mother's return after a prison stint. According to the book "Generation Friends: An Inside Look at the Show That Defined a Television Era" by comedy historian Saul Austerlitz, "Friends" had to picture what the rest of Season 1 would be like without Aniston if "Muddling Through" was successful (via Entertainment Weekly). Preston Beckman was scheduling for NBC at the time. He told The Hollywood Reporter she was in second position for "Friends." "We heard that they were putting ['Muddling Through'] on Saturday nights while we were in a current meeting. I remember [NBC entertainment chief] Warren Littlefield turns to me and said, 'Kill it!' So I did," he said, noting that he scheduled Danielle Steel movies against the show.

Beckman said CBS originally had six episodes of "Muddling Through." Aniston told Gayle King in the House that more episodes were picked up, causing "Friends" to work on a backup plan. "I remember my friends calling me saying, 'I'm auditioning for Rachel. Will you help me with the...' And I was like, what? What?" she said. "Muddling Through" would last for 10 episodes, meaning that Aniston got to keep her seat on that iconic couch and grow a romantic relationship that would have fans on the edge of their seats.

Amid Chandler's jokes, Monica's cleaning, Joey's acting, and Phoebe's singing, there is Ross and Rachel. The romance evolved over the years and included their famous break. Rachel even became a benchmark for Ross' love interests, with James Burrows writing in his book, "Directed by James Burrows: Five Decades of Stories from the Legendary Director of Taxi, Cheers, Frasier, Friends, Will & Grace, and More," that Ross' girlfriends had to be as funny as Rachel (via People). He also criticized the performance of Helen Baxendale, who played Emily. "She was nice, but not particularly funny," he wrote. Baxendale reflected on the part during an interview with Daily Mail. "'Friends' was great fun, but I was just there so they could make some funny jokes about England," she said about the role which really set the stage for a new chapter in Ross and Rachel's romance.

The couple has been immortalized in pop culture history, and Jennifer Aniston told Today that she has a feeling as to why they're so popular. "And you were investing in something that was very relatable: the one that you never could have or the one you wanted to be with but they couldn't quite get it together," she said. During Max's "Friends: The Reunion," Aniston and David Schwimmer admitted to having crushes on each other, but Schwimmer said they found themselves in other relationships. "And we never crossed that boundary," he said.

While the "Friends" cast basked in the limelight of their hit show, Jennifer Aniston's turn as Rachel Green was becoming award-worthy, setting the stage for her trophy-filled career. The role would be her first big foray into the world of acting accolades, including nominations from the Screen Actors Guild Awards. She received five Primetime Emmy nominations between 2000 and 2004, winning Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 2002. She would also receive plenty of praise from the People's Choice Awards, winning in the favorite female television performer category from 2001 to 2004.

In 2003, she would take home the Golden Globe Award for best performance by an actress in a television series. Her acceptance speech included a touching tribute to her "Friends" castmates (via E! News). "You started out as my colleagues and you're my friends and you're my family, and this wouldn't even be happening if it weren't for what I learned from you guys every day," she said, adding that she couldn't believe that she was receiving the award.

As Jennifer Aniston's acting career took off, her hair gained its own fanbase. Rachel sported a haircut just longer than a traditional bob, slightly hitting the shoulders while layered strands framed her face. It quickly became a craze as popular as the show itself and was appropriately dubbed "The Rachel." While people eagerly mimicked the style, the actress behind its namesake wasn't that thrilled about the look created by hairstylist Chris McMillan. She told Allure, "I love Chris, and he's the bane of my existence at the same time because he started that... Rachel, which was not my best look. ... I think it was the ugliest haircut I've ever seen."

According to Harper's Bazaar, Aniston brought the haircut back in the spring of 2023, making the length just a tad longer with more flowing layers. Despite "The Rachel" not being Anston's favorite hairdo, she told Forbes her thoughts upon realizing that her hair was taking center stage. "It's kind of ironic at the same time that it's iconic because it was sort of that, 'Ugh, do I have a good hair day? Am I going to have a bad hair day?' ... Yes, I have embraced it, by the way, but there's challenges for everybody and I'm included in all of that every day," she said. Aniston has built her own haircare company, LolaVie, which focuses on no-fuss products that blend nature and science.

"The Rachel" was not the only style choice that caught the attention of "Friends" viewers. While Rachel Green's ornate wedding dress from Season 1, Episode 1, "The One Where Monica Gets a Roommate," has stuck with many fans, she made numerous well-known fashion statements that reflected the style seen throughout the 1990s and 2000s. That includes plaid mini skirts, floral spaghetti-strapped dresses, elegant strapless dresses, and monochrome classic t-shirts that pair well with her Central Perk apron. And Aniston hasn't left Rachel's style in the past.

She told The Wall Street Journal that Rachel's red loafers and Monica's floral dress can be found in her closet, and revisiting past fashion moments doesn't stop there. Eagle-eyed viewers of "The Morning Show" will notice a familiar dress during Season 3, Episode 7, "Strict Scrutiny." According to Vogue, the black off-the-shoulder gown that Aniston wore at the 2010 Golden Globe Awards was recreated by Valentino for the episode which finds Alex Levy at a fashion celebration. Executive producer Kristin Hahn said the idea came from Aniston herself. "Jennifer thought about the dress that [Valentino creative director Pierpaolo Piccioli] had designed for her in 2010, and she loved that dress so much. She thought, why not just recreate that silhouette?"

"Friends" was all about sticking together, and that camaraderie translated into big money. In his memoir "Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing," Matthew Perry recalled David Schwimmer talking to him about renegotiating their contracts as a team during Season 1 in order to get paid the same amount (via Insider). "It was a decision that proved to be extremely lucrative down the line," said Perry.

In 1996, The New York Times reported that the cast's salaries varied widely, with the lowest check coming in around $20,000. The actors responded by demanding about $100,000 more per episode. Jennifer Aniston told The Wall Street Journal, "It would've destroyed us, I think, if someone was soaring financially." By 2002, the cast made TV history by signing a deal where each made $1 million per episode, according to The New York Times. The deal allowed them to continue earning syndication profits, which was signed off on two years prior. It was the biggest half-hour TV deal of its time and would be mirrored by "The Big Bang Theory" in 2014, according to Deadline.

In 2015, Aniston and her co-stars were taking home $20 million per year from syndication, according to USA Today. 

Rachel Green brought plenty of heart and comedy to "Friends," but these characteristics quickly took over Jennifer Aniston's career, putting her acting talents in the shadow of the popular character. During The Hollywood Reporter's Drama Actress Roundtable, she said, "I could not get Rachel Green off my back for the life of me." That all changed when she starred as Justine Last in the 2002 film "The Good Girl," which follows her affair with a co-worker. While relieved to try something different, Aniston said she panicked, wondering if she was good enough for the role. "'Maybe everyone else is seeing something I'm not seeing, which is you are only the girl in the New York apartment with the purple walls.' So, I was almost doing it for myself just to see if I could do something other than that."

She has continued to diversify her resume, and landing a role in the 2014 drama "Cake" was a major moment for her. She plays Claire Bennett, a woman working through personal tragedy while diving into the life of a member of her chronic pain support group. She told Cosmopolitan, "It's really hard to be cast in [a dramatic film like 'Cake']. ... Versions of this have come and gone, [but] I'm just not the go-to actor for roles like this. But I get that." Since then, she has increased her dramatic roles, most notably playing Alex Levy on "The Morning Show."

Rachel's romantic adventures became central plot points on "Friends," setting the stage for a career full of big-screen romantic-comedy credits for Jennifer Aniston. During the show's early days, she would play Allison, who falls for a man with a live-in girlfriend, in 1996's "Dream for an Insomniac." That continued with movies like 1997's "Picture Perfect," and in 1999 she would wow everyone in the comedy "Office Space," playing Joanna. As "Friends" was wrapping up, she made people laugh as Grace Connelly in 2003's "Bruce Almighty" and as Polly Prince in 2004's "Along Came Polly."

The mid-2000s found her starring in "The Break-Up," "He's Just Not That Into You," and "Just Go with It." But rom-coms have since taken a back seat in the world of cinema. In 2022, Aniston told Vartiety's "Actors on Actors" series that she wants that to change. "Why do they have such a bad rap these days?" she asked.

While she has spent much of her career working on comedies, she has said that the genre has evolved and is tougher than ever. During an interview with the French news agency AFP (via Deadline), Aniston said, "Now it's a little tricky because you have to be very careful, which makes it really hard for comedians, because the beauty of comedy is that we make fun of ourselves, make fun of life."

"Friends" would close the door on Monica's apartment one last time in 2004. The show ran for 10 seasons, airing more than 200 episodes. But that doesn't mean that the actors stopped working together after that. Since the show's end, Jennifer Aniston was spotted playing Glenn on the Courteney Cox-led sitcom "Cougar Town" during Season 2, Episode 1, "All Mixed Up." She has also reunited on the small screen with Reese Witherspoon, who played Rachel's sister Jill. Witherspoon plays journalist Bradley Jackson on the hit drama "The Morning Show," co-anchoring the news program with Aniston's Alex Levy. Aniston told The Jonathan Ross Show that the whole "Friends" cast works to stay in touch. "We will never shake each other. We're in each other's lives forever. Family forever," she said.

The cast continues to cheer each other on, helping to celebrate accomplishments. This includes supporting Cox as she received her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in February of 2023. According to Entertainment Weekly, both Aniston and Lisa Kudrow spoke at the ceremony, with Aniston referring to Kudrow and Cox as sisters. "From the beginning, she made it very clear that this was a true ensemble. She instilled into all of us to support each other and to love one another and that actors need to support and love one another," she said.

It's been more than 15 years since "Friends" ended and it is still very near and dear to Jennifer Aniston. In 2021, the cast came together for "Friends: the Reunion," which premiered on Max. The special captures Aniston, Courteney Cox, David Schwimmer, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry, and Lisa Kudrow revisiting the set while telling stories and even doing table reads of some of the series' most memorable moments. It also takes viewers back to the very beginning of the show, when it was just an idea based on the lives of co-creators Marta Kauffman and David Crane, who were living in New York City during their 20s.

The reunion tugged at fans' heartstrings as they watched the six stars walk through Central Perk and Monica's apartment once again. Aniston told The Hollywood Reporter that they were not always keen about doing a reunion but everything came together with director Ben Winston leading the way. Aniston said the return to set was much more emotional than she expected. "That was what was jarring, that we all had an idea of what the future was going to be and we were going to go hunker down and focus on this or that and then it all just changed overnight, and that was it," she said.