'Friends' stars Ross, Rachel had real crush
In this file photo, the cast of "Friends" appears in the photo room at the 54th annual Emmy Awards in Los Angeles on September 22, 2002.
After 10 years on the air and 17 years since the final episode, "Friends" still has its secrets, and one of the biggest was revealed on Thursday in a reunion special airing on HBO Max.
The on-again, off-again romance between characters Ross Geller and Rachel Green wasn't just for the cameras.
Actors David Schwimmer and Jennifer Aniston revealed for the first time that they had major crushes on each other in the early years of the series, but the first time they kissed was when their characters did so on screen in 1995.
"I just remember saying one time to David, it's gonna be such a bummer if the first time you and I actually kiss is going to be on national television," Aniston says in "Friends: The Reunion."
"We just channeled all of our adoration and love for each other into Ross and Rachel."
The kiss in the Central Perk coffee shop in the Season 2 episode "The One Where Ross Finds Out" is considered one of the highlights of the series, which ended in 2004 with the two characters getting back together.
Schwimmer and Aniston said the mutual attraction lasted for the first two years of the show, but they never got together as a couple off-screen because they were both in relationships or between relationships.
"We were both crushing hard on each other, but it was like two ships passing because one of us was always in a relationship. So we never crossed that boundary," said Schwimmer.
