Friends reunion: HBO Max looking to film special by end of summer

Special episode has been delayed by coronavirus pandemic

A planned Friends reunion could be filmed by the end of summer after being delayed by the coronavirus pandemic.

The special episode, which comes 16 years after the iconic sitcom came to an end, was originally supposed to be available when HBO Max launches on 27 May in the US.

Production shutdowns linked to the coronavirus crisis have made it impossible to stick to that schedule, but HBO Max still hopes to tape the reunion special in the coming months.

Bob Greenblatt, the chairman of WarnerMedia Entertainment (HBO Max’s parent company) gave an update during an industry event hosted virtually on Monday by Variety.

“At first we thought, shows will be delayed for a month or two at the most, and now it seems like it’s going to be far longer than that,” Greenblatt told the publication.

“We’re holding out for being able to get this special done hopefully by the end of the summer, if the stars align and hopefully we can get back into production.”

Greenblatt also made the case against a virtual reunion, adding: “We do think there’s a value to having a big, raucous live audience to experience these six great friends coming back together and we didn’t want to just suddenly do it on a web call with, you know, six squares and people shooting from their kitchens and bedrooms.”

When it was first announced by HBO Max, the reunion special was described as an unscripted episode featuring Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, Courteney Cox, David Schwimmer, Matthew Perry, and Matt LeBlanc.

The special was scheduled to be filmed on the original Friends sound stage on the Warner Bros studio lot in Burbank, California.

It will mark the first time that all six stars are reunited in front of the cameras. A partial reunion took place in 2016 without Perry.