In September 1994, NBC launched a new show titled friends and it was an instant hit. They were six young men in their twenties who are all friends living in New York City. Monica Geller was a chef and is known for being a perfectionist. Rachel Green was a fashionista, and Phoebe Buffay was a musician and masseuse, who was the quirky one. Ross Geller was Monica’s brother and a paleontologist and nerd, Joey Tribbiani was the group’s fighting and flirting actor, and Chandler Bing was the funny guy. No one knew what Chandler was up to, which was a running joke throughout the show.
In the show’s third season, it was the third highest-ranked show on television. Today, it’s one of NBC’s highest-rated sitcoms, ranking it among other giants like Seinfeld and Frasier. Over time, the cast of friends earned considerable wages. friends Broadcast on television for 10 years with the original six cast members. However, for the tenth season, the show almost lost Jennifer Aniston, who played Rachel.
Jennifer Aniston as Rachel Green
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Jennifer Aniston knew that she wanted to act from a young age and attended the New York School of Performing Arts. Once she graduated, Aniston had a few small roles, but her portrayal of Rachel Green in friends launched his career. Like Rachel, Aniston soon became a fashion pioneer. Her haircut, which became known as “the Rachel”, was very popular in the 90s. In 2004, Anniston was one of the highest paid television actresses and won a Primetime Emmy Award. Rachel was and still is very identifiable with viewers.
Rachel came from a wealthy family, but decided to leave that behind and make something of herself. She starts working as a waitress at the group’s favorite coffee shop and eventually gets a job in fashion. She is not perfect in any way; she is initially portrayed as materialistic. In one episode, Phoebe also says that Rachel is aggressive. However, she is durable and real. In addition to this, Rachel’s on-off relationship with Ross Geller is one of the most iconic relationships on television.
Problems with wages
By 1996, the show was in its third season, and Aniston and David Schwimmer, who played Ross, were the highest-paid cast. Schwimmer’s agents wanted to renegotiate their contract. Schwimmer decided to take the opportunity to form a mini union with his castmates so that everyone could get the same salary. Schwimmer and Aniston were willing to accept a pay cut for their co-stars, according to Business Insider. They requested that the cast be paid $ 75,000 each per episode, plus a percentage of syndication earnings. The actors then threatened not to appear to film until their demands were met. Collective bargaining was unusual at the time, making it friends launch pioneers. The actors won, and since then, their wages continued to grow.
How much does Jennifer Aniston earn each year?
When friends It started, Jennifer Aniston was making $ 22,500 per episode. According to the Evening Standard, Ross and Rachel’s relationship caused Aniston and Schwimmer to be paid more in the second season. Aniston was making around $ 40,000 per episode. After the cast joined in and earned the same salary, they all earned $ 75,000 / episode. Thereafter, wages increased each year: Season Four- $ 85,000, Season Five- $ 100.00, Season Six- $ 125,000, Season Seven and Eight- $ 750,000. When it was time for the ninth season, the cast started working on other projects and felt it was time to end the show. So they collectively bargained for higher wages again and were able to bargain a $ 1 million per episode salary. The show continued through seasons nine and its final tenth season.
However, Jennifer Aniston considered walking away after season nine. If she had, she would have lost $ 22 million. Aniston felt that the show should end while they were still popular and had excellent grades. Today, friends Still a Favorite While on Netflix, he gained even more followers from younger generations. friends It’s no longer streaming on Netflix, but now you can find it on HBO Max.
