The oldest “Friends” characters, Ross and Chandler, graduated in either 1987 or 1977, due to the age difference, and the younger "Friends" characters, Monica, Rachel, and Joey, followed them. Phoebe is either a dropout or a graduate.
The characters in the American sitcom “Friends” do not specifically state their graduation years. However, fans have speculated and concluded two separate theories with separate reasonings over the years, and the differences between both theories are enormous, given the ten-year gap. These two aren't the only theories; there have been many more developed by fans over the years.
Theory 1
It is evident from the various Thanksgiving flashbacks that Monica and Rachel graduated in 1988, while Ross and Chandler did so in 1987. Joey's age is unclear; according to references, he either graduated in 1986 or 1987. In the first season of his spin-off in early 2004, he is unmistakably identified as 35, which corresponds to 1987, the same year as the other boys.
Similar to the references to Phoebe's age, 1987 would have been the most likely year for her to have graduated from high school.
Theory 2
Around 1977, Monica points to Roy, the man who is escorting her to the prom, and claims that he saw Star Wars 317 times and was featured in the newspaper in "The One With The Prom Video." Proms are typically held from April to June, and Star Wars was first released in May 1977. Thus, Monica and Rachel would have graduated in 1977. Ross and Chandler may be from 1973 because they are a little older, and Phoebe is a dropout.
Joey claims to be the youngest, which suggests 1978 or 1979. However, Joey claims to be 13 in 1981 in a different episode. Though not significantly so, he is younger than the group. There are inconsistencies like that in the show. Ross's age and date of birth have changed a few times on the show; thus, it's uncertain.
What is the age of the Friends characters on the show?
The “Friends” pilot episode in 1994 would have taken place when Rachel and Monica would have both been 24 years old, despite the fact that the characters' ages vary. Ross, Chandler, and Phoebe would have been the oldest at 26 years old, making Joey 25. Friends ran for ten years on NBC, so viewers saw ten years' worth of events in the lives of the characters.
If so, when the series came to an end, Rachel, Monica, Joey, Ross, Chandler, and Phoebe would have been in their mid-thirties, somewhere between 34 and 36. Surprisingly, there wasn't much of a difference in age between the Friends cast and the characters. Given how problematic the series became in terms of how old the Friends characters were throughout the series, it is almost impossible to determine the precise ages.
Did the Friends constantly get the character's ages wrong?
Monica was the only character whose age didn't change frequently. Friends avoided any contradictions by hardly ever mentioning her age. It was logical that she stated she was 26 in season 1 (not long after losing weight) and that she grew older at a year per season rate.
For the other characters, it was impossible to make the same statement. Although they noted that Rachel was 29 years old and enrolled in Monica's school year in season two, she actually turned 30 in 2001.
Ross Geller and Joey Tribbiani's ages were also difficult for audiences to determine thanks to the writers. Ross's age was given as 26 in the “Friends” pilot episode and 29 in seasons 3, 4, and 5. Joey was 25 years old in Friends season 1, but strangely, the next season's writers gave him a three-year age increase.
Furthermore, information about Phoebe and Chandler did not logically correspond to their ages. To avoid confusion, it's simpler to think of them all as twenty-somethings entering their thirties.
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