Friends certainly didn't create the Thanksgiving-themed sitcom episode. But for 10 seasons, its turkey day celebrations were true must-sees.
Though 20 years (gulp) have passed since the series ended, re-watching these installments remains a beloved holiday tradition right up there with the Macy's parade, football and pumpkin pie.
"I think we all have associations of painful family Thanksgivings — but there also exists this holiday where friends can be together and connect," explains Friends co-creator and executive producer David Crane. "So even with all the disasters, there's something lovely about the idea of spending Thanksgiving with your friends and not the uncle you can't stand."
The NBC smash started its Thanksgiving run in the first season in 1994 when the gang runs out of the apartment to catch an errant inflatable balloon fly across Washington Square Park. They get locked out and dinner is burned, but everyone realizes how lucky they are to be together. After a skip in season two, the annual Friendsgiving was on. "At a certain point," says co-creator and executive producer Marta Kauffman, "We felt like Thanksgiving was ours. We never felt that way about Christmas or Valentine's Day."
One year, Monica (Courteney Cox) dances with a raw turkey over her head; another year, a former high school pal shows up to dinner holding a grudge against Rachel (Jennifer Aniston). That pal happened to be played by Aniston's then-husband, one Brad Pitt.
But Kauffman and Crane are here to reminisce about two other classics. In season four's "The One with Chandler in a Box" from 1997, an incensed Joey (Matt LeBlanc) implores his roommate Chandler (Matthew Perry) to lie inside a covered pine box by the dinner table to do penance for stealing away his girlfriend, Kathy (Paget Brewster). It's a poignant showcase for both LeBlanc and Perry, who died in October 2023. This is also the 25th anniversary of "The One Where Ross Got High," during which Rachel's attempt to make an English trifle goes hilariously awry and Ross (David Schwimmer) tattles to his parents (Christina Pickles and Elliot Gould) that Monica and Chandler are living together. Oh, and Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) declares her love for Jacques Cousteau.
So what really went on behind-the-scenes? Kauffman and Crane give the dish to The Television Academy.
Television Academy: Let's start with a key question about the box episode: Was Matthew really in there during filming?
David Crane: Absolutely. None of his lines were done in post [production]. Those are his fingers in the hole. And I have to say, when his finger comes up to say goodbye to Kathy, it's heartbreaking.
Marta Kauffman: Matthew did some great finger acting. But yeah, we would shoot, he'd get out of the box during the break and then he would get back in.
Other than the Thanksgiving element, why is this episode important?
Kauffman: The most exciting part was Joey and Chandler having a fight and the feeling that this could be the end of the relationship.
Crane: It was the end of a fairly significant arc that we plotted out — probably from the beginning of when we were breaking the season — of a girl coming between Joey and Chandler. So we were searching for how to get them back together. How do we resolve that? When this idea came up, we were sold.
A pre-Alias Michael Vartan also shows up at the dinner, playing the son of Monica's ex, Richard [Tom Selleck]. Why include a stranger?
Crane: We all liked the idea of Monica being drawn toward Richard's son. It seemed like a really rich story, and it gave the other five friends — actually all six — so much opportunity for comedy. Plus, Monica is wearing an eye patch.
What stands out to you about the making of the episode?
Crane: When I was watching it again, I remembered that in a very early draft, we actually see Chandler get out of the box and chase Kathy down to a train station and stop her from getting on the train. Kevin Bright, our producing partner, came to us and was like, "Do we really need a train station?" We had the budget, but it seemed like a lot. So we took another pass at it, in which the friends are on the balcony looking down and narrating the sequence of events. I think the friends talking about what's happening is better than actually dramatizing it. That's the show at its best.
The show is also at its best in "The One Where Ross Got High." Don't you agree Rachel putting beef in her dessert trifle is the chef's kiss?
Kauffman: Rachel didn't cook. She didn't even like helping Monica. So the writers loved the idea of exploring this other side of her. And Joey eats it anyway, of course.
Kauffman: I have to talk about the scene where David and Matt are sitting at the table. Ross is saying "It tastes like feet" and Joey is liking it, and the way they played it is probably one of my favorite moments of all the Thanksgivings.
Crane: If you find the blooper reel, or if you Google that scene, the funniest outtakes are David and Matt trying to get through that scene. They were just not able to do it. David just spits out food. I agree with Marta — it's one of my favorite scenes.
That was no prop trifle, right?
Crane: There was always real food on the table for Thanksgiving, so we had the bananas and the whipped cream. But we didn't really include beef in the trifle. That would have been unnecessary.
Another highlight is when all the friends make wild confessions to the Geller parents. Was that sequence difficult to stage?
Kauffman: There's a lot going on in that scene, and I actually don't recall anyone breaking [character]. So we did shoot it in one take.
Crane: I have to say, Christina Pickles did a brilliant job with that [post-confession] speech. I remember her doing it at the initial table read, and she just nailed it right from the get-go. I don't think we touched it all week. I wouldn't say our guest-stars were under-served, but our focus was always about giving great stuff to the six of them. But that was a case where she got this fabulous little monologue.
Why do you think this episode is so beloved? It always ranks high on Friends' best Thanksgiving episodes lists.
Crane: It's definitely right up there. But I do think it's because a guest star hit it out of the park. Christina just goes around the room and nails each one of them. To me, those two minutes made the episode really strong.
Kauffman: The Gellers tell you a lot about Ross and Monica.
So, which are your personal favorite Friends Thanksgivings?
Kauffman: I enjoyed "The One with the Thanksgiving Flashbacks" from season five [in 1998]. It's really funny. I love the flashbacks and seeing everybody before we met them. I also really like the Monica and Chandler stuff. He says that he loves her, and I was happy for them. I remember thinking it was really moving, even with the turkey on her head.
Crane: I'm actually going to go with "The One with Chandler in a Box." We have four stories going on in that episode. And when I watched it again, I thought, "Wow, all the stories in this episode seem to work." They all have really lovely moments — even the B or C story about Rachel always returning presents because she has a nice moment with Ross. And there's just this great moment at the end with Chandler and Joey, where Joey lets him out of the box, and he says to him, "Go get her" and tell him this is his Secret Santa gift. And then immediately after Chandler is out the door, Joey goes, "All right, someone needs to trade with me" because he didn't actually draw Chandler's name. I was really happy with that.
Kauffman: Nobody in any of the Thanksgiving episodes ever storms out and doesn't come back. We always land with the six of them.
This interview has been condensed and edited for length and clarity.
