Courteney Cox Says ‘Monica Is Alive and Well’ While Reminiscing on the 30th Anniversary of Friends (Exclusive)
“I’m lucky that it continues on through all the generations,” the actress tells PEOPLE of the show’s legacy
Courteney Cox is looking back on her hit TV show Friends upon its 30th anniversary.
During a star-studded Rock4EB event on Saturday, Sept. 21, in Malibu, Calif., the actress, 60, spoke with PEOPLE about the popular sitcom’s recent milestone and the last time she watched an episode.
“It’s just insane to me because it feels like time, it goes so fast and I don’t realize it,” Cox says when asked about the show’s anniversary. “We used to say, ‘Oh, I can’t wait for this month’ or ‘god, it feels like forever.’ I would never say that line anymore.”
Friends premiered on NBC on Sept. 22, 1994, and ran for 10 seasons through May 6, 2004. In the show, which revolves around six friends living in New York City, Cox played Monica Geller, opposite Jennifer Aniston as Rachel Green, Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe Buffay, Matt LeBlanc as Joey Tribbiani, the late Matthew Perry as Chandler Bing and David Schwimmer as Ross Geller.
Reflecting on how her character Monica lives on in pop culture and remains one of her most defining roles, Cox jokingly declares, “Monica is alive and well. Are you kidding?”
Despite having fond memories of the series, the actress tells PEOPLE she hasn’t seen an episode of the show “in a little while, but whenever I do come across it, I can’t help but [watch].”
She adds, “That show is incredible. Every joke holds up, all the characters are just so amazing, and we [had] the best writers in the world. I’m lucky that it continues on through all the generations. And that’s very fortunate.”
Considering Friends‘ lasting legacy, Cox believes it would be difficult to recreate the show’s original magic. Addressing series creators Marta Kauffman and David Crane’s recent comments about being pitched a reboot revolving around the cast’s kids, Cox says she “can’t imagine” a reboot series happening.
“It’s hard to try to redo anything,” she explains. “Anything with ‘re’ in front of it with this group… I think it’s so special.”
The Rock4EB fundraiser benefits the Epidermolysis Bullosa Medical Research Foundation, which was founded in 1991. Epidermolysis bullosa is “a group of rare diseases that cause the skin to be fragile and to blister easily,” according to the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, and there is currently no cure for it.
Over the years, the nonprofit organization has raised more than $8 million for research, with all work done on a volunteer basis. A number of celebrities have supported the cause, including Pink — who was the special performer at this year’s event — Brandi Carlile, Elizabeth Olsen, Kaley Cuoco, Tom Pelphrey, Brad Pitt and Inez de Ramon.
“This event is so important because we need to raise awareness,” Cox tells PEOPLE. “We need to continue to raise funds. This is such a behind-the-scenes charity no one understands. It’s just not out there enough. So we put together this event and get great musical guests, which kind of seems like that’s my job. I’ve been pretty good. Yep, I’ve gotten some good ones.”
