Friends remains one of the most popular sitcoms of all time, having run for ten seasons and 236 episodes. In that time, other than the six titular friends, hundreds of recurring, guest, and minor characters appeared, populating the world the characters inhabited and sometimes contributing significantly to storylines.
Many of the characters began as popular and iconic and ended the series that way. However, some other characters, including the main cast, slipped slightly over the course of the show’s lengthy run. As such, by the end of the show, some of its many characters were less popular than when they first appeared.
10 Joey Became Too Stupid To Be Believable
As with many sitcoms, Friends began to exaggerate the personalities of its characters towards the end of its run, making them less complex and emphasizing a couple of their traits. In the case of Joey Tribbiani, he went from a fairly ordinary man who was charismatic, a flirt, and somewhat unintelligent, to a serial philanderer barely capable of looking after himself.
All six friends were incredibly popular throughout their run and remain iconic characters, but towards the end of the show, many found Joey’s storylines slightly tiresome and demonstrative of the show running out of ideas. In particular, the episode where Joey fails to speak French is commonly called a lowlight for both the show and the character.
9 Emily Tried To Break Up The Group
Many of the love interests for the main characters were met a rough reception, particularly those who were seen to get in the way of a relationship between Ross and Rachel. As such, Emily Waltham was never the most popular character but found acceptance among fans – particularly with the well-enjoyed wedding arc that saw the cast visit England.
However, after the iconic moment of Ross saying Rachel’s name at their wedding, Emily’s character shifted. Although her pain was understandable, trying to separate Ross from his son or his closest friends was seen as beyond the pale, and fan opinion sharply turned against her character.
8 Judy Geller Never Learned Her Lesson
A core part of Friends was how the main cast had somewhat difficult relationships with their parents, and found a more harmonious family with one another. One of the most fraught relationships between parent and child was that of Judy and Monica Geller, with Judy’s favoritism for Ross bordering on emotional neglect and abuse at times.
This made Judy somewhat unpopular from the start, but fans were more forgiving in early appearances when she seemed prepared to overcome her flaws and bond with Monica. After several instances where Judy proceeded to do anything but – and revelations of the neglect grew worse and worse – fans found the character’s humor wore off.
7 Rachel Became More Controversial
As with all of the main cast, Rachel Greene was a hugely popular character. However, towards the end of the show, her reception became slightly more mixed. A large part of this was her key involvement in the long-running “will-they-won’t-they” storyline with her and Ross, which many fans grew tired of watching.
In addition, she had other poor storylines, including her unpopular romance with Joey. Furthermore, fans were split over the direction of her character development. Some believed she became one of the most mature members of the cast and showed the most personal growth, while others believed she’d changed little since the start of the show.
6 Kathy Broke Chandler’s Heart
In the first truly dramatic storyline of the show after Ross and Rachel’s Season 3 breakup, Season 4 saw Chandler falling helplessly in love with Joey’s new girlfriend, Kathy. After some genuinely emotional moments with all three characters, fans were on-board with the new pairing of Chandler and Kathy and saw them as well-matched.
However, Chandler’s jealousy led to a fight shortly after, and Kathy slept with one of her co-stars in the play she was in. Considering she cheated on two partners in quick succession, many fans began to suspect that Kathy and Chandler weren’t an accident and began to turn against her.
5 Sandra Greene Became Much Less Kind
Initially, Rachel’s mother Sandra appeared to be one of the more sympathetic parents in the show – a somewhat spoiled and insensitive person who was unhappy in her own life and supportive of Rachel nevertheless. With her being a major part of the well-liked episode “The One with the Two Parties,” fans seemed open to the character.
However, in her later appearances – particularly during Rachel’s pregnancy – Sandra showed a less amusing side to her character. Being needy, dependent, controlling of Rachel, and cruel to Ross, many fans found her later appearances grating.
4 Richard Got In The Way Of Chandler And Monica
In his early appearances, Richard was one of the most popular love interests of any of the characters by far. Likable, well-suited to Monica, and played by Tom Selleck, many found him a good fit for the cast, funny in his own right, and sweet with enjoyable storylines.
After breaking up with Monica, Richard made sporadic re-appearances throughout the show, including in the Season 6 finale “The One with the Proposal,” where he tells Monica he loves her and threatens Chandler’s plan to propose. Having become fully on board with the Monica and Chandler pairing, many fans didn’t appreciate this – although it was ameliorated for Richard ultimately helping Chandler after a tense conversation.
3 Phoebe’s Character Took A Controversial Turn
For much of her time on Friends, the character of Phoebe Buffay was best defined by being unusual. With strange beliefs, a dark backstory revealed through side comments, and odd behavior, she was the weirdest member of the group, and fans enjoyed her in that niche.
Later in the show, Phoebe’s character began to change. While she remained weird and strange, her episodes began to focus more on her manipulative side as she tricked and strong-armed her friends into doing her bidding. Although still a popular character, many fans disliked this shift in her personality and preferred her as a kinder figure.
2 Charlie Turned On A Dime
Although she faced the usual difficult reception of a Friends love interest, Charlie won fans over by being a well-defined character and a good match for Ross. A clever and beautiful paleontologist, fans were less sure of her relationship with Joey, but still enjoyed her dynamic with much of the group, particularly in the Barbados storyline.
Ultimately, Charlie’s turn happened within a single episode. After several episodes of a relationship with Ross, her ex returned, made Ross’s professional life hell, and then told Charlie he still loved her. She instantly left Ross for him, made out with him in front of her newly-dumped partner, and soured fan opinion of her forever.
1 Ross Geller Became The Least Popular Friend
When Friends first aired, David Schwimmer could have been described as the show’s male lead, especially with his fraught relationship with Rachel being one of the show’s long-running storylines. His character was popular and people enjoyed his many relationship dynamics.
However, in the present day, Ross is by far the least popular friend. Many consider him a bad character, or at least one who’s aged poorly. Even during the Friends‘ run, Ross slipped in people’s estimation. This was due to the tiredness of the Ross and Rachel storyline and also due to the show emphasizing his pedantry, obsessiveness, and whininess over other, more enjoyable traits.
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