The Babies Of Friends Would Be In Their 20s Today & Here’s What They’d Be Up To

It has been 20 years since Friends aired its final episode. O May 6, 2004, we all watched “The Last One,” or “The One Where They Say Goodbye,” or for some of us, “The One Where We Can’t Stop Crying.” We left Monica’s iconic, enormous apartment empty, realizing along with Joey that the apartment was actually purple all along. Monica and Chandler had just watched Erica give birth to their adopted twins and were getting ready to embark on parenthood. Something Ross and Rachel, back together (for good this time, we assume) know a little something about. Now, 20 years after the fact, the babies of Friends are adults and we want to know what they would be doing today. So here are our totally reasonable if vaguely unhinged theories on what these babies are all doing right now.

Jack Bing is basically a mini Chandler.

Jack and Erica Bing, Chandler and Monica’s adopted twins, are now 20 years old. A fraught age, an age of self discovery. Jack probably followed in his father’s footsteps and tried desperately to find a college course for becoming a “transponster,” Rachel’s definition of Chandler’s epically boring job, and was shocked to discover it doesn’t exist. At which point he decided to dedicate his life to his real love, comedy. Jack Bing is, after all, a great name for a stand-up comedian. Monica and Chandler take the train into the city to watch Jack perform at open mic nights, Monica’s face tight with a fake smile and Chandler muttering “could this BE more awkward?” Much as she did when Chandler decided he wanted to work in advertising, Monica supports her son and hopes he just tires himself out. She also visits once a week to clean his apartment and is always delighted to find that he, like his mother, is a sucker for an organized kitchen.

Erica Bing has perfected her mom’s chocolate chip cookies.

Erica has taken over her mother’s old apartment after Monica and Chandler bought it in the 2008 mortgage crisis for a song, and she’s given it a fresh update by whitewashing the walls. Much like her birth mother, who we can call Erica Sr., I guess, Erica Bing is not terribly interested in college. Instead, Erica spends her time learning about Reiki and art therapy, hosting friends in her apartment for tarot card readings on Wednesdays. Erica’s real focus is baking, and she has been considering taking over Central Perk to sell her incredible cookies. Chocolate chip cookies, to be precise, which are so good that Monica keeps trying to figure out the secret. Much as she did with Phoebe years earlier.

Emma Geller-Green is living La Vie En Rose.

Emma Geller-Green, daughter of Rachel and Ross, lives in Paris. She went to Paris with her grandmother Sandra to wait for her mother Rachel to join them for her job. Instead, her parents got back together. As Sandra and Emma were already in the City of Lights, Ross and Rachel decided to enjoy a little time alone, a delayed honeymoon if you will. While they were bonding, Sandra and Emma were falling in love with Paris. Sandra took the money from her divorce from Rachel’s dad years earlier and bought them an apartment. Emma split her time between New York and Paris for years, but ended up settling in the Latin Quarter and working in a local cafe as a barista to support her shopping habits. Her mom Rachel visits constantly, preferring 22-year-old Emma’s chic Paris lifestyle over joining Ross on paleontology digs.

Ben Geller is totally hosting a prank show.

Ben Geller is 28 years old, and you’ve probably heard of him. He has the most popular gag reality show since Jackass. Ben’s uncle Chandler frequently needles him to be included on his gag show, but so far he hasn’t gotten a guest appearance. Ross, however, is frequently getting punked by Ben and he kind of hates it even though he’s a fan favorite. Ben films all over the country, traveling in his motorhome mom Carol and stepmom Susan bought him, and his other stepmom Rachel is a frequent consultant on his gag show. It’s how they bond.

Frank Buffay Jr. is Phoebe’s right-hand man.

Frank Buffay Jr., son of Alice and Frank Buffay, has never really gotten over the fact that his aunt Phoebe was his surrogate. He loves it, and even at 26 years old lives with Phoebe and her husband Mike in an apartment in their converted barn. While Phoebe and Mike’s own daughter Regina “Gina” Phalange (named for her mother’s old alter ego) is getting ready to go off to college, Frank Jr. is content to be Phoebe’s handyman. It’s an arrangement that works for everyone, as neither Phoebe nor Mike are terribly interested in doing home repairs and they bought an old farm that is constantly falling apart.

Leslie Buffay is nanny to the stars.

Leslie Buffay grew up feeling like the forgotten triplet on account of frequently being forgotten by her parents. Because of this, Leslie decided to become a childcare professional and studied to be a nanny. Now she is working in Montecito, where she is nanny to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s two children, Archie and Lilibet, and it’s even rumored that the American Riviera Orchard jam was her idea.

Chandler Buffay is carrying on the “Smelly Cat” tradition.

Finally, Chandler Buffay found her own way to honor her aunt Phoebe. She has made a career for herself as a folk singer in Portland, Oregon, where she often covers some of her aunt’s most under-appreciated songs. Her live version of “Smelly Cat” has been known to bring her fans to tears, especially Phoebe. She played at Coachella this year, inviting her uncle Mike on stage to play piano, and the entire gang showed up to watch her perform. So this would be “The One Where ‘Smelly Cat’ Becomes A Hit.”

As much as we love speculating on where these babies are now that they’re all in their 20s, we would not be opposed to a reboot. Especially now that we’ve given the Friends’ creators some ideas on where everyone might be today.