[NEWS] 'Friends': Secrets Exposed by Life & Style magazine

(2016) Life & Style magazine: Friends Reunion!

'Friends' was - and still is - a phenomenal television series with 10 season, 236 episodes, 62 Emmy nominations and a cast of 6 actors who we all welcomed into our living rooms every Thursday night to see what they were up to: whether they were falling in love, helping each other through heartache or financial crisis - they were always there for each other. Now Life & Style magazine is exposing their secrets with a juicy tell-all cover story regarding the stars true feelings, love life, addictions, and more!

Hank Azaria as Joey Tribianni, Ellen DeGeneres as Phoebe Buffay, Eric McCormack as Ross Ross, Jon Cryer as Chandler Bing, Leah Remini as Monica Geller & Elizabeth Hurley as Rachel Green

Matt LeBlanc as Joey, Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe, David Schwimmer as Ross, Matthew Perry as Chandler, Courteney as Monica & Jennifer as Rachel

Season 1 "This [Friends] Will Never Last"
"The NBC network played up the image that all six actors were as close off-screen as they were on-screen, but that wasn't the truth," said an insider. "While they're all much more mature and settled now they still aren't that close." When the series premiered September 22, 1994 with six fresh faces, including Jennifer Aniston from CBS's 'Muddling Through', Courteney Cox from NBC's 'Family Ties', Lisa Kudrow from NBC's 'Mad About You', Matt LeBlanc from FOX's 'Vinnie & Bobby', Matthew Perry from FOX's 'Second Chance', and David Schwimmer from FOX's 'Monty'; no one was sure 'Friends' would even last one season (it lasted 10). And over that time Jennifer who played Rachel Green, Courteney Cox who played Monica Geller, Lisa Kudrow who played Phoebe Buffay, Matt LeBlanc who played Joey Tribianni, Matthew Perry who played Chandler Bing, and David Schwimmer who played Ross Geller got VERY familiar with each other over the course of 10-years while doing the show.

'Friends' won the Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series in 2002

"We all knew what it was like to be on a series that had gotten cancelled before and thought the same going into this," said Matthew Perry, "none of us I don't think went in thinking, 'I know this is going to be a hit!' ". The six actors who were cast weren't the only ones in mind for these famous roles: actor/comedian Hank Azaria was in mind for the part of Joey (later he recurred as Phoebe's love interest, David), comedienne Ellen DeGeneres was considered for the role of Phoebe, Eric tried out for Ross (later he starred on another series 'Will & Grace' also fueled by James Burrows), actor Jon Cryer was up for Chandler (he went on to star in 'Two and a Half Men'), actress Leah Remini was a strong choice for Monica (she later guest starred on 'Friends'), and actress Elizabeth Berkley almost replaced Jennifer as Rachel. 

Female 'Friends': Courteney Cox, Jennifer Aniston & Lisa Kudrow

Feuds & Drama: "Unrequited Love & Clash of the Cast Members"
"There was tons of love drama," said Cox, "one rumor that went around the set was that me and Matthew Perry had a fling" (our characters Monica and Chandler eventually became a couple on-screen.) For others, there was only unrequited love. "The first season, Matt LeBlanc hit on me like crazy," said Jennifer, "he was relentless; I hated it. I had zero interest in him in that way and my first impression of him was that he was an airhead and a ladies man, but over time once I got to know him better my opinion changed."

The Love Triangle: Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer & Matt LeBlanc

In later seasons Jennifer and Matt's characters Rachel and Joey, eventually locked lips, but Jennifer's real crush was on David - her man on-screen love interest who played Ross Geller. "I had a crush on him because I thought he was smart and great-looking," Jennifer admitted, "at some point a rumor spread that I wanted to be artificially inseminated with David's sperm, which was complete crap. I mean - I thought David had great genes and would make a great father some day, but not the way that word got around." Their mutual admiration is tangiable, but they didn't necessarily expect to get along at first Schwimmer, Perry, and Kudrow were all concerned about Cox, who at the time was the biggest name of the group, might have a star attitude. "I thought she'd be a little aloof and celebrity-ish", confesses Kudrow, "and Courteney wasn't at all. She's so great!"

Male 'Friends': Matthew Perry, David Schwimmer & Matt LeBlanc

Schwimmer and Perry felt equally effusive about Cox now, but they were also initially skeptical about LeBlanc, who was a onetime Levi's 501 jeans model. "I was like, 'This guy's kind of a dick," recalls David of meeting Matt. I thought, 'Oh great, here's this guy I'm going to work with for maybe five years, and he's fucking Joe Cool stud.' Well, Matt's turned me around completely," said Schwimmer. "He's an unbelievably nice guy in the body of a tough, get-out-of-my-way guy," said Matthew Perry. Early on Lisa had reservations about her female 'Friends' co-stars admitting, "Jennifer and Courteney were cliquey. I felt like actress Winonna Ryder's character in 'Heathers' - the big nerd who was the odd out with the popular girls. Of course after they got married and settled we had more in common."

(2000) People: Brad & Jennifer's Wedding!

(2004) Brad Pitt & Jennifer Aniston

(2003) People: Courteney & David Inside Their Marriage

(2010) Courteney Cox & David Arquette

(2003) People: Matt LeBlanc's Wedding!

(2004) Matt LeBlanc & Melissa McKnight

Relationships & Personal Lives: "Love & Addictions"
Jennifer, Courteney, Matt and Lisa all went on the wed people who weren't cast mates during the show's run. (Jennifer married film actor Brad Pitt July 29, 2000; Courteney married actor/producer David Arquette June 12, 1999; Matt LeBlanc married actress Melissa McKnight May 3, 2003, and Lisa married advertising executive Michel Stern). But now only Lisa, 'Friends' quirky scene-stealer Phoebe Buffay (who memorably claimed that lobsters mate for life), hasn't gone through a divorce. (Jennifer's divorce from Brad was publicized October 5, 2005 after cheating allegations with actress/director Angelina Jolie; Courteney divorced David Arquette May 28, 2013 claiming it was amicable and they're still best friends; Matt LeBlanc divorced Melissa October 6, 2006 after cheating on her with his 'Joey' co-star actress Andrea Andres.

(2000) Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe Buffay

(2000) Matthew Perry as Chandler Bing

Lisa once tried to warn Jennifer that her now ex-husband, Brad Pitt, wasn't Mr. Right. "I just wasn't impressed when she started dating him," said Kudrow, "I thought Brad was a slacker who was full of himself. Jennifer was annoyed, but years later, after her divorce, she told me that she should have listened to my advice." When Courteney and her then-husband David Arquette got together she didn't mind sharing her opinion regarding their relationship either. "I thought David was bad news," admitted Jennifer, "I would say things to Courteney like, 'You can do better.' She resented me for it and we didn't speak for a while," said Aniston.

(2015) People: Matthew Perry My Life as an Addict

The men of the show grappled with more serious problems than disliking spouses and love interests. Matthew Perry, who entered rehab twice during 'Friends' run, admits, "I struggled with drug and alcohol addiction," admitted Perry, "I got in a skiing accident injuring my leg and got addicted to the pain killers (Vicodin). As a result my weight fluctuated drastically over the next few years and I once dropped down to 145-lbs. I lost 20-lbs in 2000 because of pancreatitis. I then entered rehab again in 2001 because while I was filming 'Serving Sara' opposite actress Elizabeth Hurley, I had severe stomach pain, which was a result of my excessive use of opioids (specifically Vicodin and methodane), amphetamines, and alcohol. "Because of my addiction I honestly don't remember working on season 3-6, drugs and alcohol will do that to you," said Perry. Half of the cast thought that Perry should have been fired, while the other half was super-supportive. Matt LeBlanc admits, "During the show I was arrested twice for DUI's. Courteney tried organizing and intervention to address my drinking. There were talks of strong-arming me me into rehab." The cast became adept to keeping their personal lives out of the public eye.

Brad Pitt guest stars season 8 episode "The One with the Rumor"

Guest Stars: "You Love 'Em, You Hate 'Em"
A-listers lined up to guest star on 'Friends', but not everyone jumped at the chance. Some memorable guest stars include actor George Clooney, actress Julia Roberts, actor/comedian Ben Stiller, actor/comedians Billy Crystal & Robin Williams, actor Hugh Laurie, actress Reese Witherspoon, actor Bruce Willis, actress Susan Sarandon, actress Winonna Ryder, actor Brad Pitt, actor Alec Baldwin, actress Christina Applegate, and actor/comedian Paul Rudd. Life & Style magazine has learned that though he was married to Jennifer at the time - Brad only agreed to his guest stint as Will Colbert (who hated Rachel because she used to bully him) in a Thanksgiving-themed episode because he lost a bet: "We made a bet to see who could go the longest without smoking, and I won," said Jennifer, "so his end of the bet was making a guest appearance on the show."

Bruce Willis guest stars season 6 episode "The One Where Ross Meets Elizabeth's Father"

Pitt isn't the only one who got swindled into a bet: "I bet Bruce Willis 'The Whole Nine Yards' will open at number one in the box office, and he thought I was crazy so we bet on it - and he lost so he agreed to guest star on the show," said Matthew Perry. In fact Willis enjoyed his guest appearance so much that he returned for a second episode. He guest starred twice episode "The One Where Ross Meets Elizabeth's Dad", and "The One Where Paul's the Man". The increasingly famous cast was occasionally star struck.

Sean Penn guest stars season 8 episode "The One with the Halloween Party"

"Sean Penn was one of our favorite guest stars," admitted Lisa, "instead of being a moody hot-headed like his public persona, he played practical jokes on the cast and ate lunch with us in the commissary. He even sent flowers thanking us for having him on our show." Though she was married, Lisa 'fawned over' Sean. Nothing happened between us, but I did fawn over him." Kudrow wasn't the only one who feel for a guest star.

Julia Roberts guest stars season 3 episode "The One After the Super Bowl (Part 2)"

Matthew Perry briefly dated actress Julia Roberts who played his love interest on the show - however, he was alone in his affections. She was by far the most hated guest star on the series. Cox admits, "She was standoffish. The cast organized a group dinner to welcome her, and she stood us up. When Jennifer mentioned the idea of making a movie with her in the future (Aniston and Roberts when on the star in 2016's 'Mother's Day'), Julia rolled her eyes and walked away. We were all thrilled when Matthew's romance with her fizzled."