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Why Cole Sprouse and Paul Rudd Were Missing from the 'Friends' Reunion

Photo credit: Terence Patrick - Getty Images
Photo credit: Terence Patrick - Getty Images

The Friends reunion was literally packed with guest appearances (hi, Lady Gaga), but there were also some notable absences. Considering this show had a ton of famous guest stars, fans have been wondering why more of them weren't at the reunion—specifically Paul "Forever Young" Rudd and Cole Sprouse.

Director Ben Winston was asked about their absences by TheWrap, and explained that it basically came down to timing and scheduling.

“Well, we couldn’t have everybody on, because it’s only an hour and 45 minutes. And you’ve got to pay attention—the main nub of the show has got to be about the six cast members,” he explained. “So you can’t have too many cameos because of course, there were hundreds of amazing people who were in Friends over the years. Sadly, we couldn’t get everybody in.”

Photo credit: Terence Patrick - HBO
Photo credit: Terence Patrick - HBO

“You know, we did invite some people who weren’t able to make it,” Winston continued. “It’s a complicated time to be making television now because, you know, some people couldn’t fly internationally, some people were on other TV or film shoots, some people are in bubbles on stuff.”

Apparently, even Winston and Jennifer Aniston had to request special permission to leave their production bubbles (on The Late Late Show and The Morning Show, respectively) in order to film the reunion.

“I think during a pandemic, it’s really hard to get everybody where you want to be. And the other thing, of course, is we have no flexibility. It was one night that those six [main cast members] were available,” Winston said. “The timing of it was incredibly difficult. So, you know, if you weren’t available on the seventh of April at 8 p.m., then, sadly, they weren’t able to be part of it. Yeah, we couldn’t get everybody in. It’s just one of those things. I hope people will think about all the great things that are in there rather than the things that aren’t.”

Got it, and honestly Joey's hand twin Thomas Lennon making a cameo was pretty much all I needed.

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