{"id":1221,"date":"2026-01-20T10:10:02","date_gmt":"2026-01-20T10:10:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsliked.online\/?p=1221"},"modified":"2026-01-20T10:10:02","modified_gmt":"2026-01-20T10:10:02","slug":"before-friends-officially-said-goodbye-in-2004-nbc-was-already-scrambling-to-keep-the-magic-alive-and-heres-the-twist-many-fans-still-dont-know-joey-wasnt-the-network","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsliked.online\/?p=1221","title":{"rendered":"Before Friends officially said goodbye in 2004, NBC was already scrambling to keep the magic alive. And here\u2019s the twist many fans still don\u2019t know: Joey wasn\u2019t the network\u2019s first choice."},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"xdj266r x14z9mp xat24cr x1lziwak x1vvkbs x126k92a\">\n<div dir=\"auto\">Before Friends officially said goodbye in 2004, NBC was already scrambling to keep the magic alive. And here\u2019s the twist many fans still don\u2019t know: Joey wasn\u2019t the network\u2019s first choice.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"x14z9mp xat24cr x1lziwak x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a\">\n<div dir=\"auto\">In the immediate aftermath of that record-breaking finale, executives reportedly approached Matthew Perry and Courteney Cox with an ambitious idea\u2014continue the story of Monica and Chandler. The proposed spin-off, tentatively titled The Bings, would\u2019ve followed the couple as they left Manhattan behind for suburban Westchester, juggling new parenthood with twins, home ownership, and a very different kind of chaos.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"x14z9mp xat24cr x1lziwak x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a\">\n<div dir=\"auto\">NBC believed Monica and Chandler\u2019s steady, deeply loved dynamic was the safest way to extend the Friends universe. For fans, it could\u2019ve meant seeing the couple we watched grow up finally settle into married life\u2014arguments over lawn care instead of apartment cleanliness, late-night feedings instead of Central Perk hangouts.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"x14z9mp xat24cr x1lziwak x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a\">\n<div dir=\"auto\">But Perry and Cox ultimately said no. Both felt it was the right moment to step away, avoid being permanently tied to their iconic roles, and start fresh creatively. Only after The Bings was shelved did the network pivot to the character most willing to continue\u2014sending Joey Tribbiani west for his Los Angeles chapter.<\/div>\n<div dir=\"auto\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone  wp-image-1222\" src=\"https:\/\/newsliked.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/615860007_1436388724521283_4011163994814962142_n-253x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"388\" height=\"460\" srcset=\"https:\/\/newsliked.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/615860007_1436388724521283_4011163994814962142_n-253x300.jpg 253w, https:\/\/newsliked.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/615860007_1436388724521283_4011163994814962142_n.jpg 506w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 388px) 100vw, 388px\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Before Friends officially said goodbye in 2004, NBC was already scrambling to keep the magic alive. And here\u2019s the twist many fans still don\u2019t know: Joey wasn\u2019t the network\u2019s first choice. In the immediate aftermath of that record-breaking finale, executives reportedly approached Matthew Perry and Courteney Cox with an ambitious idea\u2014continue the story of Monica [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1222,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1221","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stars"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsliked.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1221","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsliked.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsliked.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsliked.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsliked.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1221"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/newsliked.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1221\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1223,"href":"https:\/\/newsliked.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1221\/revisions\/1223"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsliked.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1222"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsliked.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1221"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsliked.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1221"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsliked.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1221"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}