Friends Leaves Netflix Tonight, How Will Fans Be Able To Watch The Beloved Sitcom In 2020?

Source: Twitter

For all of the Friends fans who have a binge planned in the near future, they should be ready to dish out some cash if they want to have access to all ten seasons of the beloved 1990s sitcom. Friends will officially be taken down from Netflix just after the ball drops in Times Square, and fans won’t be able to find the sitcom on any other streaming platform until May.

Friends has been a staple of Netflix since 2015, as it has been one of the platform’s most-watched shows. But, earlier this year, WarnerMedia announced that they had purchased the rights to all 236 episodes of the classic NBC sitcom, and it will be part of their new streaming platform, HBO Max, which will launch in May.

My mom knew how upset I was about Friends leaving Netflix. A QUEEN. pic.twitter.com/wK6bVmkeKB

— kirby (@mommatofour_) December 25, 2019

That means that for the next four months, anyone who wants to watch an episode of Friends starring Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matthew Perry, Matt LeBlanc, and David Schwimmer will have to rent or purchase individual episodes or seasons on digital retailers like YouTube, Amazon, and iTunes. However, it can get expensive really quick.

Individual episodes on YouTube and Amazon cost $1.99, or fans have the option to buy an entire season for $19.99. Of course, the show has ten seasons, which means it would cost $200 for anyone who wanted to binge the entire series. The complete collection is a bit more affordable on iTunes, coming in at $140.

The most affordable option for fans who want access to the entire series before May is a complete DVD box set from Amazon that is available for $74.19 plus shipping.

https://twitter.com/__bebecitaa/status/1211948132298153984

According to People magazine, TBS and TNT president Kevin Reilly told reporters at the Television Critics Association earlier this year that even though fans might not be thrilled about Friends moving from Netflix to HBO Max, it was inevitable for WarnerMedia to create a plan to have all of their big name properties on their own streaming platform.

“I think you can expect the crown jewels of Warner will ultimately end up on our new service. Pulling it away [from Netflix]? It’s certainly something we’re willing to do,” said Reilly. “I think for the most part, sharing destination assets like that is not a good model to share — my belief is that they should be exclusive.”

HBO Max arrives in May 2020, and the platform will be available to subscribers for $14.99 per month.