“We’d Go Back and Shoot All the Historical Scenes”. Matt LeBlanc's Rejected Idea Could Ruin Friends
Matt LeBlanc proposed an idea to the creators of Friends, which was quickly rejected. Implementing it could have meant ruining the TV series.
At the end of Friends, two couples formed in the group we followed. In the meantime, one also formed when Rachel and Joey became closer, which, however, did not last long. But it turned out that there could have been more romantic connections between the friends, if the TV series' creators had decided to implement Matt LeBlanc's idea.
Many fans of the sitcom loved the friendship between Joey and Phoebe, however, the actor came up with the idea that there should be more between them. During an interview for People, LeBlanc talked about how he came up with the idea that Joey and Phoebe might have casually slept together over the course of the TV show. He suggested to the show's creators that they reshoot “historical scenes” to reveal their relationship, but this idea was quickly rejected.
Towards the end we actually pitched the idea that Joey and Phoebe had been having casual s*x the entire time. We’d go back and shoot all the historical scenes and just before a moment that everyone recognizes, there’s Joey and Phoebe coming out of a broom closet together. But they were like, “Nah”.
The filmmakers probably made a good decision in leaving Joey and Phoebe's friendship devoid of romantic ties, especially of this kind. The bond of these characters was so special that it could have been spoiled in this way, so it was good that it was left as it was.
This was also not necessary due to the fact that the sitcom was a TV series about friends, not a group of couples, so not everyone needed to be paired up. Some people were able to find love outside of a pack of friends, which is what happened in Phoebe's case.
