Courteney Cox Surprises Fan After His ‘Friends’ Themed Bar Mitzvah Goes Viral

Friends star Courteney Cox surprised a young superfan during an appearance on The Late Late Show With James Corden Monday night.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=239&v=szmGN-_6bSA&feature=emb_title

Thirteen-year-old Naftali of Borehamwood, England, was on the show Monday to discuss his canceled Friends-themed bar mitzvah when Cox popped in to say hello.

The pandemic forced young Naftali to cancel his party, so instead, he held what his rabbi, Alex Chapper, called “the first-ever virtual bar mitzvah.” The teenager expected only his close family to watch the ceremony, but thousands have viewed the event.

“I had no idea. I thought that it was just going to be a small thing, my family and just a few friends, but it turned out to be so big,” Naftali said.

During his ceremony, the boy discussed the relevance of the Friends theme song’s lyrics.

“So no one told you life was going to be this way,” Naftali quoted, referring to the current state of the world.

“I’ll be there for you,” and “you’ll be there for me, too,” he continued.

The bar mitzvah was supposed to have centered around the hit television show. The event plan had Friends-themed invites, photo opportunities on a large sofa just like the one in Central Perk, and table numbers featuring Friends characters. The family had prepared to rent a foosball table just like the one in Joey and Chandler’s apartment to entertain guests.

Even though the show first finished airing two years before young Naftali was born, he has seen the entire series seven times. He said the show was “really funny” and that he loved that “you can relate to all the characters.”

Corden — who is also a self-proclaimed Friends superfan — then introduced Naftali to Cox. The actress who played Monica Gellar told Naftali she was “really touched” by his story, so she wanted to get him something. Cox gifted the boy a foosball table, just like the one he was going to have at his party.

The interview concluded with a dialogue between Naftali and Cox reminiscent of the hit TV show.

“You know, I had to cancel my bar mitzvah and hold it online,” Naftali said.

“I KNOW!” Cox replied in her best Monica Gellar voice.

Friends aired from 1994 to 2004. The entirety of the Emmy award-winning show is going to be available on HBO Max, whose launch on May 27 was supposed to be celebrated by a reunion of the Friends cast. However, a recent report stated the reunion show will be delayed and likely not film until sometime this summer, due to the pandemic.