Why Rachel And Ross Were Always Endgame On Friends
"Friends" is one of the most popular television shows to ever air, and while there were many relationships during the series, the romance between Ross Gellar (David Schwimmer) and Rachel Green (Jennifer Aniston) was the most intriguing to fans. Ross and Rachel always seemed to be endgame, even though it took them 10 seasons to finally figure it out for themselves. When the show ended in 2004, there was no way that fans would have been happy with anything less than a Ross and Rachel romantic reunion, and the show's creators knew it.
The characters of Ross and Rachel were set up as the show's central couple from the beginning of the series. Although Monica Gellar (Courteney Cox) and Chandler Bing (Matthew Perry) ultimately got together and even tied the knot, fans were also wondering when Ross and Rachel would follow suit. Although there were reportedly talks of not having the iconic TV couple get together in the finale.
"We did talk about, with Ross and Rachel, a gray area of where they aren't together, but we hint there's a sense that they might be down the road," the show's co-creator David Crane previously told Entertainment Weekly. Thankfully, those plans were scrapped and viewers later got the epic Ross and Rachel ending they wanted with the two finally realizing that they were meant to be together.
Fans wanted Ross and Rachel together
"Friends" co-creator David Crane admitted there were alternate endings where Ross and Rachel didn't end up together, but they were impossible to pull off as the couple was considered to be endgame by not only fans, but also the cast and crew. "We thought, 'No, if we're going to do it, let's do it.' It's the nature of our show. It's not a show about grays. Let's deliver not just what the audience wants, but what we want, which was to see them finally together," Crane told Entertainment Weekly of the fictional couple's finale reunion.
The series finale showed Rachel prepared to move to Paris for a career opportunity. The night before her departure she and Ross have one final night together, but the next day Ross realizes that he's still in love with Rachel. He rushes to try to get her off of her airplane, but it's unclear whether or not she actually left the airport. Finally, it's revealed that Rachel did get off the plane and the two share a kiss.
In 2021, the "Friends" cast gathered for a highly anticipated reunion, and speculated on what their characters would be doing now. Jennifer Aniston and David Schwimmer agreed on what Ross and Rachel would be up to. "Let's say we get married," Aniston said of the TV couple (via Entertainment Weekly). "We end up getting married and we had some kids, and you still are playing with bones," she told Schwimmer.
Ross and Rachel had a dramatic relationship history
Before "Friends" fans watched Ross and Rachel finally end up together in the show's series finale, the couple entertained viewers for a decade — here's their whole relationship timeline explained. In Season 1, Rachel found out that Ross has feelings for her, but it was too late as he'd already entered into another relationship. When Ross learned that his feelings were reciprocated he broke up with his girlfriend and was free to explore his feelings for Rachel. The two had a great love story progression until Season 3 when there was a debate about whether or not the couple were on a break. Ross believed they were and slept with another woman, breaking Rachel's heart.
From there, the couple went back and forth about their feelings for each other for several seasons and even attempted to get back together in Season 4. However, they could never make it work. In Season 5 they drunkenly got married in Vegas. The marriage is ultimately annulled but the storyline continued to prove that Ross and Rachel's feelings were never in sync. Despite relationships with other people, the two ended up pregnant after a one-night stand and welcomed a daughter named Emma. They co-parented the little girl until finally giving in to their love for each other and getting back together in the finale.
Ross and Rachel's love story was messy and iconic, but fans can rest assured that the two were officially endgame and got their happy ending.