If you ever wanted to shout out “Chanandler Bong!” as the answer to a trivia question, then I have some great news for you! In honor of Friends celebrating its (gulp) 30th anniversary, a game show based on the TV show is currently in development at NBC. The series, titled Fast Friends, is a four-parter and will stream on Max. Production begins in October, but it’ll be part of the interactive Friends Experience exhibit in NYC and will have fans answering trivia, solving puzzles, and participating in challenges. I kind of picture it as Legends of the Hidden Temple, only set in the world of Friends.
The new four-part game show, which will stream on Max, begins production next month at “The ‘Friends’ Experience” interactive exhibit in New York. The show will invite die-hard “Friends” fans to answer trivia questions, solve puzzles and participate in challenges that take place in the exhibit’s re-created sets from the show.
“From racing through Rachel and Monica’s apartment to darting across Joey and Chandler’s bachelor pad and grabbing a coffee at Central Perk, fans will re-live their favorite moments while being put to the test with trivia, puzzles, and games that will keep even the most die-hard FRIENDS fans on their toes,” the studio said.
The team that makes its way through the challenges the fastest will win the title of “Ultimate Friends Fan.”
The announcement comes as “Friends” celebrates the 30th anniversary of its debut episode on Sept. 22, 1994, which marked the first time viewers met Ross (David Schwimmer), Rachel (Jennifer Aniston), Chandler (Matthew Perry), Monica (Courteney Cox), Joey (Matt LeBlanc) and Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow).
“Fast Friends” is an upcoming game show series that will invite die-hard “Friends” fans to answer trivia, solve puzzles and participate in games related to the show. The quickest team “will win the title of Ultimate Friends Fan,” Warner Bros. said in its announcement, which comes as the show celebrates the 30th anniversary of its Sept. 22, 1994, premiere on NBC.
“Fast Friends,” which Warner Bros. called “the first of its kind,” will be filmed at “The ‘Friends’ Experience: The One in New York,” an interactive exhibit featuring set re-creations, costumes, props and more from the series. The game show’s contestants will compete in the exhibit’s re-created versions of the show’s sets, including Rachel and Monica’s apartment, Joey and Chandler’s apartment, and the Central Perk coffee shop.
“Fast Friends,” which is produced by Warner Bros. Unscripted Television in association with Warner Horizon, is set to begin production next month.
There’s definitely an audience for a Friends-themed game show. I know at least four people in my age group that still turn on Friends for comfort watching or background noise. And while I can’t count myself in that particular group, this Elder Millennial grew up watching Friends, so I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that this does sound kinda fun to watch. I wouldn’t watch it as a nightly or even weekly thing but I could get behind it as a special. I hope there’s an entire segment or category about their Thanksgiving episodes. Those were always the best to watch and full of juicy details that are ripe for the quizzing.
Why?
Creativity and new ideas instead please.
All that running around just to be named Ultimate Friends Fan? Attach a big fat check to that title and we’ll talk.
Friends has its flaws, but was a cultural milestone for millennials and Generation X. I would rather see Frontline-style documentaries about the drug crisis in America that explains what happened to Matthew Perry on a wider scale, but Friends is comfortable fluff before we realized how ick no representation was. Matthew Perry’s legacy should be used as a teaching tool somehow. I can’t look at a pic of the Friends cast without a twinge of sadness now.
I was hoping for “Bamboozled.”