Friends Is Leaving Netflix for Good in January 2020
The day many Netflix users have dreaded for months is finally upon us: We now know when Friends is leaving the streaming platform.
This isn’t a total surprise, as the announcement that the show would move to Warner Bros. new streaming platform HBO Max came in July—but that doesn’t make it any less of a bummer. Plus, HBO Max isn’t slated to launch until the spring. That means there will be a few months without your Rachel, Monica, Phoebe, Chandler, Joey, and Ross fix.
As of January 1, 2020, Friends will no longer be streaming on the platform, according to the recently updated “availability” section on the show’s official landing page. HBO Max’s official launch date has not been announced yet.
“HBO Max will bring together the diverse riches of WarnerMedia to create programming and user experiences not seen before in a streaming platform,” WarnerMedia Entertainment and direct-to-consumer chairman Robert Greenblatt said about the acquisition at the time. “HBO’s world-class programming leads the way, the quality of which will be the guiding principle for our new array of Max Originals, our exciting acquisitions, and the very best of the Warner Bros. libraries, starting with the phenomenon that is Friends. Under the leadership of two of the strongest creative visionaries—Casey Bloys (HBO) and Kevin Reilly (original content and acquisitions)—and two of the most experienced digital experts, Tony Goncalves and Andy Forssell, I have no doubt they and their dedicated teams will deliver the world’s best storytelling to audiences of all ages wherever and whenever they want it.”
But your Friends will still be there for you through the holidays, thank goodness. So get your fill of Smelly Cat, Ugly Naked Guy, Mrs. Chanandler Bong, and all that ’90s fashion while you can and take heart in the news that a reunion special is reportedly in the works for HBO Max.
“We would love for there to be something,” Jennifer Aniston recently told Ellen DeGeneres. “But we don’t know what that something is. So we’re just trying. We’re working on something.”