Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Aniston teamed up for The Morning Show, but it's not their first time as co-stars. Witherspoon appeared on two 2000 episodes of Friends as Jill, Rachel Green's (Aniston) younger sister. It was a short story arc, but as Witherspoon revealed to Aniston during an interview with the Associated Press, she was asked to appear on the show again and turned it down.
The revelation came out during a conversation about acting in front of live audiences, which is how Friends was filmed. Witherspoon commended Aniston for how good she is in front of audiences, who complimented her right back.
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“You are, too, you forget it because you blacked out from fear,” Aniston replied, referring to the filming of the season 6 episodes.
“I’ve never done it again,” she said. “Did you know they asked me back and I said I can’t do it? I got...I was too scared."
Reese Witherspoon (@ReeseW) reveals that she was asked back to #Friends but declined. Unlike Jennifer Aniston, she did not enjoy performing in front of a live studio audience when she played Aniston’s sister on the show. pic.twitter.com/tdSpE3Eo7S
— AP Entertainment (@APEntertainment) November 15, 2019
"How dare," Aniston replied upon learning the news. "How doth you say this?"
"I got scared! They asked me to come back and I was like, ‘I’m too nervous,'" Witherspoon continued. "You know what else is terrifying? Saturday Night Live. Terrifying."
However, there's still a chance to overcome this incredible loss. Earlier this week, The Hollywood Reporter revealed that a Friends reunion special is in the works at HBO Max, bringing original cast Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry, David Schwimmer, and series creators David Crane and Marta Kauffman back together. It is a long way from a concrete deal, which means there's plenty of time to throw Witherspoon into the mix — even if that means facing another live audience is in her future.