American sitcom Friends is one of the biggest TV shows of the 1990s and early 2000s. It had a 10 year run with 10 seasons. As the seasons went on, the public fell in love with the show and characters. The series finale on May 6, 2004, was watched by around 52.5 million American viewers, making it the most watched episode of the 2000s, and the fifth most watched in television history.

During its original run on television (1994-2004), the show received a lot of acclaim and accolades. It was nominated for a 62 Primetime Emmy Award, winning the Outstanding Comedy Series award for its eighth season in 2002.

The show contained multiple memorable characters throughout all 10 seasons. Some who have remained familiar faces and some you may have never seen again. Want to know what they've been up to since? Here we go...

16 Jennifer Aniston

Character: Rachel Green

Jennifer Aniston's big breakthrough as an actress might have been when got the role of Rachel Green but the producers of the show wanted her to audition for the part of Monica. The producers felt Courteney Cox was better for that role in the end. Rachel has passion for fashion and Monica is her best friend from her childhood who reunite in episode one. Rachel ends up having a child with Monica's brother Ross at the end of season eight.

Since Friends, Jennifer transformed herself into a big movie star. Her biggest box office success was when she appeared in Bruce Almighty in 2003 in which she played the girlfriend of Bruce Almighty's character (played by Jim Carrey). The film grossed 484-million dollars and is considered a modern day classic. Her other box office successes have been The Break-Up, Marley & Me, Horrible Bosses and We're The Millers. As one of the highest paid actresses in Hollywood, she earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2012. Aniston is worth an estimated 200-million dollars. In 2018 she is set to be in two upcoming films - The Yellow Birds and Dumplin'.

Jennifer previously had a high profile relationship with actor Brad Pitt who she was married to for five years but since then has got married to Justin Theroux in 2015 who is also an actor. Unfortunately, her and Justin Theroux have decided to call it quits.

15 Courteney Cox

Character: Monica Geller

Jennifer Aniston originally auditioned for the role of Monica and Courteney originally auditioned for the role of Rachel, but as fans know, they made the right decision in the end. Cox's character as Monica was a chef, and often the motherly figure for the gang. She was known for her perfectionist, bossy, competitive, and obsessive personality.

After Friends, producer Marc Cherry's first choice for someone to play Susan Mayer on Desperate Housewives was Cox, but that was quickly scrapped when Courteney was unable to commit to the role due to her pregnancy. She later appeared in movies such as November, Zoom and the re-make of The Longest Yard. She and her husband David Arquette were the executive producers of the series Dirt which Cox played the role of Lucy Spiller. She appeared in three episodes of Scrubs and in 2009 she began her lead role of Jules Cobb on ABC's successful show Cougar Town which had six seasons.

Since divorcing Arquette, Courteney began dating Snow Patrol band member Johnny McDaid in 2013 and they announced their engagement a year later via Twitter.

14 Lisa Kudrow

Character: Phoebe Buffay

Lisa Kudrow's big breakthrough when playing the role of Phoebe came at a great price as she and her other female co-stars were all reportedly getting one-million dollars each per episode for the ninth and 10th seasons. Kudrow's character is a masseuse and self-taught musician who plays the guitar. Buffay is a whimsical blonde who has her smart moments here and there. Ursula is the name of her characters twin sister who is also portrayed by Lisa.

Kudrow has been married to French advertising executive Michel Stern since 1995. They had their son Julian Murray Stern, who was born on May 7, 1998. Lisa's pregnancy was written into the script of Friends in seasons 4 and 5 where Phoebe's character had triplets.

Lisa went on to produce, write and even star in HBO's 2005 comedy series The Comeback which had its own comeback nine years later with its second season airing in 2014. She is also one of the executive producers of the TLC reality program Who Do You Think You Are.

Besides Television work, Kudrow has appeared in lots of films. From P.S I Love You to The Girl On The Train, Lisa has earned her credit as a big movie star. Her latest film was 2017's The Boss Baby where she played the voice of Mrs. Templeton.

13 Matt LeBlanc

Character: Joey Tribbiani

Matt LaBlanc's role, Joey, is an actor who struggles to get roles, and isn't afraid to express his love for food. He becomes famous for his role on soap opera Days of Our Lives as Dr. Drake Ramoray and constantly has flings with many women.

With the success of Friends, LeBlanc got his own spin off sitcom titled Joey which had two seasons. In 2006, his spin-off show got cancelled, and Matt took a hiatus from acting for five years. In 2011, LeBlanc began appearing as a fictional version of himself in Episodes which won himself a 2012 Golden Globe for Best Actor in a TV Series Comedy. After appearing on the eighth season of Top Gear, Matt was announced to be one of the new presenters of the show in February 2016 and still presents it now.

He currently plays the lead role of Adam Burns in CBS's sitcom Man With A Plan.

12 Matthew Perry

Character: Chandler Bing

Before Friends, Perry was already an established actor starring in the TV series Second Chance which became Boys Will Be Boys in the '80s. His first film was the 1988 A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon. With the huge success of him playing Chandler Bing, he was nominated for a 2002 Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series award at the Emmys. Chandlers character is sarcastic and funny. Throughout the series he's known for his bad luck in relationships until he marries Monica in season seven.

After Friends had finished, Perry made his debut as a director in an episode of of Scrubs during its fourth season, in which he also guest starred in as Murray Marks. In 2009 he played the role of the older Mike O'Donnell in the box office success 17 Again. In 2014, Perry made his British TV debut in the one-off comedy program The Dog Thrower and also played the lead role in his play The End of Longing in February 2016 at the Playhouse Theatre in London. Since then he has taken it to Broadway in June 2017.

11 David Schwimmer

Character: Ross Geller

After appearing in a couple of films in the early '90s, Schwimmer's big break was through Friends playing Ross Geller. Ross is the older brother of Monica who ends up with Rachel in the season finale after they have a daughter together. He has had three failed marriages previously. Ross is socially awkward but is sweet-natured.

His first leading film role was in The Pallbearer in 1996 while he was still in the cast of Friends. Since Friends ended, he has had more film roles, including the voice of Melman the Giraffe in the animated film, Madagascar, Big Nothing and Nothing But the Truth. In 2005 he made his West-end stage debut in 2005 when playing the lead role in Some Girl(s). The year after he made his Broadway debut in The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial.

David made his debut as a feature film director with the 2007 comedy Run Fatboy Run. In 2016, he starred as lawyer Robert Kardashian in American Crime Story. For this role he received his second Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie. Schwimmer's latest movie was The Boss in 2017 where he played the Boss in the short film.

David has been married to artist, photographer and producer Zoë Buckman since 2010.

10 James Michael Tyler

Character: Gunther

For 10 years, James played Gunther in Friends as a recurring character. He played a coffee shop worker at Central Perk who had a lot of love for Rachel, even though it was never requited. He made 148 appearances out of the 236 episodes made making him most frequently appearing guest star.

Since Friends, Tyler has appeared a few movies and TV shows. In 2011 he played Andrew in 50/50, a therapist in an episode of Scrubs, an Agent in iCarly and himself in an episode of Episodes. For the 20th anniversary of Friends in 2014, Tyler made appearances at a Central Perk replica in SoHo, Manhattan.

James married Barbara Chadsey in 1994 but they separated in 2003. Their divorce was finalised in 2014.

9 Elliott Gould

Character: Jack Geller

American actor Elliott Gould started his career in Hollywood acting in films in the 1960s. Some of Gould's most famous films are M*A*S*H, The Long Goodbye, and California Split. In more recent years he became a familiar face to a newer generation when playing the role of Jack Geller in Friends. He plays the father of Monica and Ross.

In 2001 he played the role of Reuben Tishkoff in the Ocean's Trilogy until 2007 and Ezra Goldman in Ray Donovan from 2013-2015. You can hear his voice on several animated series, including Kim Possible, Disney Channel's animated series and video game Scarface: The World Is Yours released in 2006.

In 2017 he had a lead role in CBS's Doubt which got cancelled after it's first season, despite millions of viewers. Gould's latest film is 2017's Humor Me.

8 Christina Pickles

Character: Judy Geller

Christina Pickles rose to fame when she played the long-running role of Nurse Helen Rosenthal in the NBC medical drama St. Elsewhere for six years in the '80s. Major films she has appeared in include Masters of the Universe, Legends of the Fall, Romeo + Juliet and The Wedding Singer. In Friends she played the role of Judy Geller and was married to Jack Geller. She was Monica and Ross's mother.

After Friends she appeared in a few episodes of How I Met Your Mother as Lily Aldrin's grandmother as well as guest appearing on The Division, Medium, and Childrens Hospital.

In 1985, Pickles divorced producer and director Victor Lobl after 23 years of marriage. In 2005 she married Ian Masters, an Australian Journalist.

7 Jessica Hecht

Character: Susan Bunch

Hecht's recurring role on Friends as Susan Bunch, the wife of Ross Geller's ex-wife, Carol Willick made 12 appearances on the show.

Jessica is known for her work on Broadway and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress for her role in A View from the Bridge which also starred Scarlett Johansson and Liev Schreiber. It wrapped on April 4, 2010. Other Broadway work she's done includes Harvey with Jim Parsons in 2012 and revival of Fiddler of the Roof in 2016 which was directed by Bartlett Sher.

She appeared in big TV shows such as Breaking Bad as Gretchen Schwartz as well as a guest role on Desperate Housewives in 2011. Hecht appeared in 10 episodes of Red Oaks between 2016-2017. The latest film she starred in was 2017's Anesthesia.

6 Maggie Wheeler

Character: Janice Litman Goralnik

Maggie Wheeler played the role of Janice who was Chandler's on-again, off-again girlfriend for the first four seasons. She appears in all of the Friends seasons for at least one episode and is known for her nasal New York accent which annoys Chandler.

She had a recurring role as Linda Gruenfelder in Everybody Loves Raymond for eight years and appeared in an episode of Will and Grace while still being in Friends. After she appeared in a lot of TV shows for small roles in Drake & Josh, The War at Home, Shake It Up and Californication to name a few.

Since Friends she's only appeared in three films which are Dr. Doolittle 3, Walking Dreams and The 3 Tails: A Mermaid Adventure.

5 Steven Eckholdt

Character: Mark Robinson

Mark is Rachel's deskmate at Bloomingdale's where she works. Ross is jealous of him since he thinks they are having an affair together.

Steve was born in Los Angeles, California but has German ancestry. Before Friends, Eckholdt had been acting in the '80s on TV shows such as The Love Boat and 21 Jump Street.

L.A. Law, Melrose Place, It's Like, You Know..., Providence, The West Wing and The L Word are among his main screen appearances.  Since playing the role of Mark Robinson, he starred in the CBS television sitcom My Big Fat Greek Life which was based on the film, My Big Fat Greek Wedding. His most recent role appears to be when he appeared in the seventh season of Two and a Half Men playing Brad, a lawyer who is the reason for the breakup of Charlie and Chelsea in 2010.

4 Helen Baxendale

Character: Emily Waltham

Emily's was the English niece of Rachel's boss, Mr Waltham. She had a relationship with Ross and they decided to get married. Her friendship with Rachel soon came to an end when Ross accidentally said Rachel's name during their vows at their wedding.

Before her role as Emily, Baxendale had appeared in a number of television and short films. Since then, she's been really busy appearing in more of those such as The Only Boy for Me, Dead Clever and Big Mouth. to She played Rachel Bradley in Cold Feet for 32 episodes and Pandora Braithwaite in Adrian Mole: the Cappuccino Years.

Her latest new role was an appearance in Midsummer Murders in 2016. Her current role is Lorna Thompson in Cuckoo who she has been playing since 2012. The shows success was proven when it was nominated for Best New Comedy Programme at the British Comedy Awards.

3 Lauren Tom

Character: Julie

Julie, played by Laurie Tom was one of the few Asian American Characters on Friends. She is an old school friend of Ross's and start dating at the beginning of season two. They split due to Ross realising he loves Rachel.

Tom had appeared in a lot of one off episodes before Friends in shows such as The Cosby Show, Quantum Leap and Anything but Love. She played Lady Broker in 80s film Wall Street.

After her role as Julie in 1996, Lauren has done a lot of voice overs for a lot different things. She played Angela Chen in The Batman Superman Movie: World's Finest, Superman: The Last Son of Krypton and in the TV episodes of Superman. She was the voice of multiple characters - Amy Wong, Inez Wong and various others in the show Futurama and Yoshiko in Kim Impossible. Lauren's latest voice job was Lara in 2015's Justice League: Gods and Monsters. Tom has also kept up the acting by featuring in TV movies and shows.

2 Paul Rudd

Character: Mike Hannigan

Movie star, comedian, writer, and producer Paul Rudd played Phoebe's boyfriend Mike. He started in season nine and ends up her husband.

Before Friends, Rudd made his acting debut in television drama Sisters in 1992. He starred in Clueless with Alicia Silverstone in 1995 which has become a cult classic and Romeo + Juliet.

In the 2000's, he started getting lead roles and appearing in huge blockbuster films such as Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, The-40-Year-Old Virgin, Night at the Museum, This is 40, Ant-Man, Captain America: Civil War and Spider-Man: Homecoming.

2018 is going to be a busy year for Rudd as he will appear in The Catcher Was a Spy, Ideal Home, Mute, Avengers: Infinity War and Ant-Man and the Wasp. They are currently filming the next Avengers film where he continue his role as Anthony & Joe Russo. It is due out in 2019.

1 Aisha Tyler

Character: Charlie Wheeler 

Aisha Tyler played the role of Charlie Wheeler, a paleontology professor who starts dating Joey during season nine. Joey realises he doesn't have anything in common with her so they break up. Ross then starts dating her until Charlie gets back with her former lover Dr. Benjamin Hobart.

Tyler's successful career in TV started in 2001 when she hosted Talk Soup and the reality-dating series The Fifth Wheel. She followed up her role on Friends with guest spots on CSI: Miami and Nip/Tuck, with recurring roles on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and 24 during 2004–2005. She was a permanent co-host on The Talk between 2011-2017.

She had appeared in a lot of big screen movies including The Santa Clause 2, Never Die Alone, The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause, .45, Bedtime Stories and her latest role as the voice of Louise in 2017's Axis.

Aisha married attorney Jeff Tietjens in the '90s but separated in January 2015. Their divorce was finalized in May 2017.