Terrence Patrick/HBO Max

Finally! The six stars were overcome with emotion to return to Stage 24 at Warner Bros. studios for the long-awaited, onscreen reunion in May 2021.

Stepping back onto a soundstage, Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry and David Schwimmer were taken aback by the sight of the meticulously recreated world they hadn’t visited in 17 years: Joey and Chandler’s bachelor pad, Monica and Rachel’s apartment, even Central Perk, where the thrift-store-find orange couch was always reserved for them.

“I was flooded with 10 years of irreplaceable memories,” Cox told PEOPLE of the rush of emotions.

“It’s funny, when we do get together, it’s like no time has passed,” LeBlanc echoed. “We pick up right where we left off.”

04 of 25The One with a Viewing Party

Favorite shows are better with friends. Kudrow and Schwimmer – otherwise known as Phoebe and Ross – got together to watch the highly anticipated Friends reunion special, which premiered May 27 on HBO Max.

The viewing party tugged at the heartstrings of their costars, who reacted in the comments section.

“Love you two so much! ❤️,” wrote Jennifer Aniston.

“Awww I love you guy[s]!!!” Courteney Cox added with a string of heart emojis.

05 of 25The One with Carpool KaraokeThe Late Late Show with James Corden

Following the reunion, James Corden surprised Friends fans with never-before-seen footage of an impromptu carpool karaoke session with the six longtime costars. Singing their hearts out in a golf cart en route to the Warner Bros. soundstage, the group belted out “I’ll Be There for You” by The Rembrandts, the theme song from their hit sitcom.

“What about that for a trip down memory lane?” the host asked once they wrapped, to which Courteney Cox exclaimed, “I always wanted to do Carpool Karaoke!”

06 of 25The One with a Holiday TwistCourteney Cox Instagram

On July 4th, 2021, the ladies were back at it, celebrating the holiday together in a photo posted to Cox’s Instagram.

07 of 25The One with the Lifelong RoommatesLisa Kudrow, Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox. ABC

Friends forever! During the 72nd annual Emmy Awards on Sept. 20, 2020, nominee Jennifer Aniston was joined by pals Courteney Cox and Lisa Kudrow as she tuned in virtually to chat with host Jimmy Kimmel.

When Kimmel noticed Cox next to Aniston – who earned a nomination for her leading role in The Morning Show – the former Friends star told him, “of course I’m here, we live together.”

“We’ve been roommates since 1994, Jimmy,” Aniston joked, referring to the year the NBC comedy premiered.

08 of 25The One with the Pool Table

Real life BFFs Courteney Cox and Jennifer Aniston recently let their competitive sides shine over a game of pool – during which Cox quickly proved her prowess, while the Morning Show star hilariously tried to keep up.

09 of 25The One When Chandler Gets an Instagram!Lisa Kudrow/Instagram

Lisa Kudrow said it best: “Finally!!! Yay!! Can’t believe my eyes MY EYES Welcome to Instagram @mattyperry4 #friendsforlife.” Is there a better way to welcome the final ‘friend’ to Instagram than with a throwback photo and iconic quote?

10 of 25The One with the ‘Girls Across the Hall’Jennifer Aniston/ Instagram

Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox and Lisa Kudrow reunited for an all-girl bite in January 2020 and posted evidence of the hangout on Instagram.

“Hi from the girls across the hall 👋🏼,” Aniston captioned the adorable snap.

Kudrow posted her own photos from the girls’ night, captioning her pics with her gal pals, “Bliss. And more bliss #goodgirlfriends.”

11 of 25The One with a Lunch DateCourteney Cox/Instagram

Former on-screen love interests Cox and Perry reminded the world they’re still real-life pals as they shared a smiling selfie on Nov. 7.

“Guess who I had lunch with today….I KNOW!! Could I BE any happier? #realfriends” Cox captioned the snap, including the catchphrases of their two characters, Monica and Chandler.

Fellow Friends alumni chimed in on the shot, with Lisa Kudrow commenting, “Lucky lucky. #beautifulpeople,” and a delighted Jennifer Aniston showing off her newfound love for Instagram, writing, “MATTY!! ❤️❤️❤️ I LOVE YOU, GUYS.”

12 of 25The One Where Rachel Gets HonoredGregg DeGuire/Getty

Double-reunion day! After lunch with Perry, Cox joined Lisa Kudrow to present BFF Jennifer Aniston with the Artists Inspiration Award during the SAG-AFTRA Foundation’s 4th annual Patron of the Artists Awards in Beverly Hills.

13 of 25The One When Rachel Gets Instagram!Jennifer Aniston/Instagram

Jennifer Aniston nearly broke the Internet when she at long last made the decision to join Instagram on Oct. 15, 2019, making her debut on the platform with the first full Friends cast photo since the show went off the air.

“And now we’re Instagram FRIENDS too,” the actress captioned the group selfie. “HI INSTAGRAM 👋🏻.”

14 of 25The One with the Soft SmilesCourteney Cox/Instagram

Earlier in October, Aniston got together with pals Courteney Cox and Matt LeBlanc for what Cox described as “a rare night.”

Shortly after Aniston made her Instagram debut, she made herself known on her Friends‘ pages, writing on Cox’s post, “A rare comment and I love YOU.”

15 of 25The One with the FireworksCourteney Cox/ Instagram

Cox and Aniston’s time as onscreen Friends Monica Geller and Rachel Green set the stage for their relationship as real-life besties. While the duo were part of a particularly insular friend group on the show, they’ve made a number of gal pals off-screen, and over the Fourth of July they all got together to celebrate (and snap a selfie!) with some other familiar faces: Big Little Lies star Laura Dern, actress Suzanne Somers and jewelry designer Jennifer Meyer. Fellow former costar Lisa Kudrow, who played Phoebe Buffay, commented on the cuteness, writing, “Awww. Happy 4th!”

16 of 25The One with the Girls’ NightLisa Kudrow/Instagram

After a decade of playing a motley crew who seemed to spend all their waking hours together, a girls’ night is definitely in order for Cox, Aniston and Kudrow every now and again. While the gang tended to gather at Monica’s (when they weren’t over-caffeinating at Central Perk), the ladies aren’t relegated to a film set for their hangouts – but fittingly, it seems like Cox’s house is often the home base for their get-togethers.

17 of 25The One with the SelfiesCourteney Cox/Instagram

Is this what it would have looked like if the cast had cell phones? Rachel would have insisted on a filter and a better angle, obviously. The BFFs snapped another silly selfie during their girls’ night, showing they’re just as close (literally) as their beloved characters.

18 of 25The One Where Monica Grows UpCourtney Cox/Instagram

Here’s hoping that Cox’s 55th 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡day went more smoothly than Monica’s 30th, when Phoebe offered to flash the guests to distract Monica’s parents from how drunk their “grown-up” daughter was at her party. Kudrow and Aniston instead showed their support for the 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡day girl by joining in on her special day. “How lucky am I to celebrate my 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡day with these two??? I love you girls. So much,” Cox captioned a selfie of the trio. “LOVE you girls! Happy happy Court,” Kudrow commented.

19 of 25The One Where Phoebe Sees Too MuchLisa Kudrow/Instagram

“My eyes! My eyes!” Kudrow captioned a selfie of her and Cox tearing up with laughter. The pair joking about the quote is enough to make any fan chuckle as they remember Phoebe shouting it out when she and Rachel accidentally discovered Monica and Chandler hooking up.

20 of 25The One Where Rachel Goes to Cougar TownKaren Neal/ABC/Getty

The BFFs reunited onscreen once again when Aniston guest starred on the season 2 premiere of Cougar Town, which Cox co-executive produced and starred in. Though their roles were entirely different – Aniston played Glenn, Jules’ (Cox) new therapist, whom she quickly bonds with before realizing her methods are questionable at best – it’s hard not to see a glimmer of Monica and Rachel whenever the two are together.

21 of 25The One Where The Bings Reunite

The Bings are back! Nearly a decade after playing Chandler Bing, Monica’s goofy, not quite “boyfriend material” best-friend-turned-husband, Matthew Perry set fans’ hearts aflutter with this cuddly snapshot of him and Cox from when she guest starred as a potential love interest on his show Go On in 2013. Her character turned out to be a less-than-ideal match, but fans were still delighted to see Monica and Chandler – er, Cox and Perry – back together. “Some ladies can even make a cemetery look good. Thanks for joining us CC!” Perry affectionately captioned the shot on Twitter.

22 of 25The One with Date NightCourteney Cox/Twitter

We’re just going to pretend that this snapshot of Perry and Cox from her stint as a guest star on Go On is really a date night photo of Monica and Chandler. They would’ve sent it out to their Friends group text, and Ross would’ve gotten it framed to display alongside some of his dinosaur artifacts, naturally.

23 of 25The One Where Joey and Phoebe End up TogetherEric Charbonneau/Shutterstock

Despite the sporadic kisses they exchanged and their quirky compatibility, the couple that everyone shipped did not end up together on the show – but Kudrow and Matt LeBlanc gifted Phoey-shippers with this cuddly photo at Showtime’s 2012 Summer TCA Party. The pair previously admitted to PEOPLE that they wouldn’t have been opposed to a relationship between their characters – in fact, they actually suggested it.

“Towards the end we actually pitched the idea that Joey and Phoebe had been having casual 𝓈ℯ𝓍 the entire time,” LeBlanc said. “We’d go back and shoot all the historical scenes and just before a moment that everyone recognizes, there’s Joey and Phoebe coming out of a broom closet together. But they were like, ‘Nah.’ ”

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