July 23, 2001
Or will it?
NBC executives have stopped their gloomy fatalism and started talking about possible negotiations for another season. Executives from Warner Brothers, the studio that produces the series, have quietly expressed hope that the show can be extended.
David Crane, one of the show's executive producers, had no hesitation at all. He said here in a interview that he wanted the show back, that he would happily do a year or two more of the show and that he simply did not accept the widespread conviction that "Friends" was coming to the end.
"I have heard it, and I resist it," Mr. Crane said. "I think there is a strange kind of energy surrounding it, and I would love to see that dispelled."
Every previous extension of "Friends" became a protracted showdown over money, with the six-member cast sticking together to forge equality of pay. The money issue may have changed somewhat in that the stars now have so much that they do not mind leaving.
NBC and Warner Brothers executives agree that they are not prepared to pay any more than they do, which, according to one senior executive, is $18 million a year for each of the show's leading actors.
One executive who has worked on the show said, "I think the cast is gone." The reason is that at least some of the actors think they can make it in movies, and the others might be loathe to keep going for fear the show will slide, making it look like those who left had more star power.
The likeliest defectors, according to this executive, are Lisa Kudrow and Jennifer Aniston.
How about recasting with two or three new friends? Mr. Crane said no to a suggestion of a show with four, and "I don't know" to a show with five of the six "Friends" intact.
The executive who worked on the show said of its lead actors: "I think they want to go out on a high note and get out before it takes a nose dive.
"Besides, if you brought in new people, wouldn't you have to change the name to `Friends and Acquaintances?' "
