Friends is an American sitcom television series, created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting ten seasons. With an ensemble cast starring Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry and David Schwimmer, the show revolved around six friends in their 20s and 30s who lived in Manhattan, New York City.

All six main actors in Friends had prior experience in situation comedy, and, in some cases, improvisational comedy as well. All six actors appear in every episode.

The main cast members were familiar to television viewers before their roles on Friends, but were not considered to be stars. Series creator David Crane wanted all six characters to be equally prominent, and the series was lauded as being the first true ensemble show .