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Robert Greenblatt, chairman of WarnerMedia
Entertainment, which is launching the HBO Max streaming service
on May 27, said on Monday he thought it was worth waiting until
the one-off unscripted show could be filmed in a traditional
way.
The reunion, dreamed of by fans for years, was supposed to have
helped launch HBO Max, but the coronavirus epidemic shut down
production across Hollywood before it could be filmed.
"We are holding out to be able to get this special done
hopefully by the end of the summer. We do think there's a value
to having a raucous live audience experience these six great
friends coming back together," Greenblatt told Hollywood outlet
Variety in an interview.
"We didn't want to just do it suddenly on a web call, or six
squares and people shooting from their kitchens and bedrooms,"
Greenblatt added.
Shows such as "Saturday Night Live" and a reunion of "Parks and
Recreation" have put together episodes by recording stars in
their homes.
"Friends," starring Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, Courteney
Cox, David Schwimmer, Matt LeBlanc and Matthew Perry, ended in
2004 after 10 years, but it remains one of the most popular
shows in re-runs.
"If this (coronavirus) goes on indefinitely, we may go the
virtual route," Greenblatt said. "But at the moment we are
trying to look to the future and get this thing done in a more
conventional way.
"If we launch it in the fall, I think it will be something that
will have the audience looking forward to," he added.
(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
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