FRIENDS: Reunion records over 1 million views in less than seven hours on Zee5

Friends: The Reunion has recorded over 1 million views in less than seven hours of its digital premiere in India. The highly-anticipated reunion began streaming on Zee5 on Thursday afternoon.

The leading cast of the American sitcom, comprising Jennifer Aniston, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow and Matthew Perry, reunited 17 years after the finale premiered. The reunion was initially scheduled to take place in 2020 but was delayed owing to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

Speaking about the response to the reunion on the digital platform, Amit Goenka President, Digital Businesses & Platforms, ZEE, said in a statement, “We at ZEE are extremely delighted to note the roaring response that ‘Friends: The Reunion’ received on ZEE5, by amassing 1mn+ views and counting from across the Country. We feel extremely proud to have played a part in understanding and serving the cult-loyal audience of the show, by seamlessly streaming it across millions of screens.”

In the special episode, the actors read a few scenes, recalled cherished memories and shared interesting anecdotes. The creators recounted tales about each actor’s addition to the cast, the stars played a trivia game revolving around the show, play out a blooper reel, share stories of broken shoulders and reveal secrets about their crushes on sets.

Also Read: FRIENDS reunion: Your favourite sitcom was not always wholesome, here are 5 problematic plot lines

The special has already received much love from the show’s die-hard fans. Hindustan Times’ review calls it The episode ‘a long ballad in their honour.’ It reads, “The initial hugs may seem awkward — Lisa seems even less like Phoebe when you see her in crisp black shirt and without her usual Luna Lovegood air, Matthew seems to be trying to speak as little as possible. But as soon as David breaks out the trivia game, Courteney gets her Monica face on, Lisa screams as a bug flies in her hair and Matthew finds a sarcastic joke to wedge in, you know you are back in the 90s again.”