Pop Culture Digest
By Karen Hsin

Are Friends forever? Maybe, maybe not.

We thought it would end last year, but before dedicated Friends fans had time to prepare for its departure, NBC decided to grace us with another season. The ninth season was going to be “the last.” As the popular sitcom’s audience mourned the anticipated removal of the half-hour highlight of their Thursday evenings — savoring each episode because they knew there wouldn’t be many more left — Friends producers announced yet another “final,” tenth season.
As one of the television shows that grosses the highest amount of money from commercial advertisements, it seems quite strange that Warner Brothers Studios, which produces Friends, would let such a hugely successful sitcom come to an end. However, with the six core actors of the show each receiving $1 million per episode, plus the salary of the three brains behind the show (Producers Kevin S. Bright, Marta Kauffman and David Crane), it is no wonder that the show has to end due to financial difficulties. Friends has become so expensive to produce that Warner Brothers can no longer support the costs of continuing the show’s filming. Simply purchasing light bulbs for the set each week costs $1700. As of now, NBC pays Warner Brothers approximately $7 million per episode, but the renewal of the contract would mean a drastic increase in price totaling as much as $9 million.
It has become typical of the Friends cast to cause a heap of commotion every year when the time comes to renew contracts again. After every close of the season, the six unite their forces and demand higher wages. While the average American survives on $20,000-$30,000 per year, many have found it revolting that each member of the cast receives $1 million per episode and yet complains about feeling dissatisfied.
The comedic plot of the April 3 episode, “The One with the Lottery,” surprisingly reflects the sitcom’s main impediment. Joey (Matt LeBlanc) wants to purchase a ticket from the multimillion dollar powerball jackpot and, hearing the idea, Monica (Courtney Cox Arquette) manages to encourage the whole group to collaborate on the gamble. Fascinated by the possibilities of winning $300 million, the group discusses their plans on how to spend the money and breaks into a heated argument where money is weighed against friendship.
Disagreeing on how they would want to share the reward, Rachel (Jennifer Aniston) threatens to break her long friendship with Monica. For a moment, the group’s heated argument sent the audience into a slight panic that the sextet would separate because of greed; and not until Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) threatens to throw away the bowl of lottery tickets does the group settle their dispute.
In this episode, simply fantasizing about the sum of money they might win seriously threatens the unity of the group. In reality, the six actors’ situation closely parallels the obstacle presented by this episode. The inevitable breakup of Friends mainly stems from the actors’ incessant demands for salary raises. On the show, it is quite a relief that the characters never win the lottery, saving them all from the risk of ending their friendship. While the characters overcome money’s challenge, Friends’ real life situation does not look too hopeful. At least in the world of make-believe television shows, the six still remain together, though no one can say how long that will last.

April 25
May 2

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