“The One Where We Have To Say Goodbye” to Friends on Netflix
December 10, 2019
Friends, one of the most popular sitcoms of all time, will be leaving Netflix on January 1st, 2020.
It had been announced at the beginning of July this year that the series was going to be pulled from the streaming service in favor of the new Warner Bros. streaming platform, HBO Max, which will include the exclusive streaming rights to launch all 236 episodes of Friends.
In 2015, Friends was added to Netflix, and the streaming network, at the time, had the rights to the series for four years. In 2019, Friends was scheduled to leave Netflix. After fan uproar, Netflix was able to keep the rights to the series for another year by making a deal with Warner Bros, but it was at a tremendous cost to the tune of $80-100 million for the year, according to Vox.
WarnerMedia paid $425 million ($85 million a year for five years) for the rights to “Friends,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.
“We’re sorry to see Friends go to Warner’s steaming service at the beginning of 2020 (in The US). Thanks for the memories, gang,” Netflix announced.
Although the news does not come as a surprise, it is still hitting fans hard, and some are even threatening to cancel their Netflix subscription.
Netflix has recently suffered an abundance of losses as the many other streaming services were created. For instance, dozens of users have switched to Disney+ after their release. Additionally, the streamer is set to lose the classic NBC sitcom Frasier by the end of the month, with The Office, one of the other most-streamed series on the platform, set to exit sometime this spring.
HBO Max launches in the spring of 2020. HBO Max will provide content from HBO with a slate of originals and programming from Warner Bros., New Line, DC Entertainment, CNN, TNT, TBS, truTV, The CW, Turner Classic Movies, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, Crunchyroll, Rooster Teeth and Looney Tunes. Friends will join as soon as it launches.