Friends reunion moderator James Corden grilled the Friends cast about off-screen romances, and Jennifer Aniston, 52, and David Schwimmer, 54, revealed some surprising information during the epic reunion. David admitted that he had a “major crush” on Jen during the first season of the hit series, and Jennifer added that the feelings were “reciprocal.”
David continued, “At some point, we were both crushing hard on each other, but it was like two ships passing because one of us was always in a relationship, and we never crossed that boundary. We respected that, but we both…”
Matt LeBlanc, 53, decided to chime in and say, “Bullsh*t.” That had the crowd roaring. Matt quickly clarified by saying that he was “kidding.”
David remembered that in the first two years of Friends, he would “cuddle on the couch” with Jennifer, who added that they would “spoon and fall asleep on the couch.” David admitted, “And I’m thinking, ‘How do not everyone know we’re crushing on each other?'”
Matthew Perry quipped, “We knew.” Courteney Cox added, “We knew for sure.” David said that dynamic was a “situation” he and Jen “couldn’t do anything” about. “How great though, ultimately? Because if you had, and it didn’t work out, it would not have probably been as great,” Courteney noted.
Jennifer revealed that she and David just took all their feelings for each other and put them into Ross and Rachel. “Honestly, I remember saying one time to David, ‘It’s going to be such a bummer if the first time you and I actually kiss is going to be on national television.’ Sure enough, [the] first time we kissed was in that coffee shop. So we just channeled all of our adoration and love for each other into Ross and Rachel.”
Ross and Rachel’s monumental first kiss happened in season 2 at Central Perk. Jennifer and David revisited that iconic moment during the reunion special and had their very own table read of the scene in “The One Where Ross Finds Out.” You could feel the chemistry through the screen between Jennifer and David when that episode aired in 1995.
After Jennifer and David’s big reveal about their crushes on each other, James yelled, “Is this blowing anyone else’s mind?” Courteney Cox, 56, revealed that she watched the episode of Ross and Rachel’s first kiss and was “weeping” by the end. “The tension, it was just palpable. It was just perfect.” Courteney said. Well, now we know why! Friends: The Reunion is now streaming on HBO Max.