‘The Comeback’ Season 3 sneaks in its first-ever ‘Friends’ reference

Lisa Kudrow Multiverse wide open return back Season 3, Episode 2, as referenced in a wink by Kudrow’s fictional sitcom star Valerie Cherish Friend.

The reference comes during a production meeting how’s that?!Valerie’s new, AI-written multi-cam sitcom. She wants to bring famous TV director Jimmy Burrows (playing a fictional version of himself) how’s that?!, worked with him room and boredom Back in Season 1.

according to how’s that?! Showrunners Mary and Josh (Abbi Jacobson and John Early), they hear from Jimmy’s agent that he has given the project the go-ahead.

“Agents say ‘no’ to everything,” says Valerie. “If it were up to his agent, Jimmy wouldn’t do it to encourage. Or Will and Grace. Or Frasier. Or Vesper—”

Mary interrupts Valerie before she can say anything. FriendWhich resulted in viewers getting a fun tidbit about Kudrow’s other sitcoms from her past.

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This quick moment is the first time return back ever made any kind Friend References, but this isn’t just fan service to spend a few bucks on. Series co-creators Kudrow and Michael Patrick King decided that this season should include at least some acknowledgments. Friend Because how’s that?! Shooting is taking place on Warner Bros. Stage 24: the same stage where Friend was shot.

“Couldn’t help it,” Kudrow said of the references at a Los Angeles press conference. “We were shooting Friend stage.”

In reference to the abridged Episode 2, King said: “Our main interest was in how close we could get to Valerie actually saying the words Friend…That was the third rail we were touching.”

So now we know that Valerie Cherish knows Friend‘Existence, Is Lisa Kudrow and Valerie Cherish Too Much to Ask for an Actors on Actors Parody?

new episodes of return back Season 3 premieres Sunday at 10:30 pm ET on HBO and HBO Max.